MBTA – Page 25 – chelsea's corner

SLW (Short-turn Silver Line)

Oh god. So, a mysterious figure appeared in the distance, walking right towards me and about 5 others. Alright, let’s find out who it is. And it was…..woah, woah, WHAT?!

…MILES?! *I spit my tea out in shock*

Yeah, Miles himself, from Miles in Transit, ended up showing up, along with about 9 others. Now that there was a party of 16 for Miles’ first phase in riding every overhead-powered bus route in the country, how were we going to go about this? Well, the T happens to run short-turn Silver Line trips between Silver Line Way and South Station that only run on the section shared between the SL1, SL2, and SL3. Eventually, after waiting in the shade and introducing ourselves (and some tomfoolery), all 16 of us boarded the next SLW bus to South Station. Weirdly enough, only the middle door opened and I felt a little uneasy committing fare evasion. But is it really fare evasion if the driver is only bothered to open the middle door? Once we all settled into the back part of the bendy bus, we were off to the races.

Of course, being mildly rambunctious, we were all collectively probably every bus operator’s worst nightmare. Nevertheless, once we got to World Trade Center, all of four people got on. “FOUR PEOPLE?! THAT’S ALL THE RIDERSHIP!” someone yelled. As we progressed towards Courthouse, we started singing Sweet Caroline, to get the full MBTA experience. And boy, was it a good time. Soon enough, we made it to South Station, round of applause for the operator (presumably for putting up with all our shenanigans), and everything. From here, we all gathered for a group picture in front of the inbound platform and we’d all head up to the food court for lunch before Miles and Jackson had to run off to catch the Lake Shore Limited to Chicago.

EVERYONE. IS. HERE!
(I’m in the Harvard hoodie kneeling). Credits to Miles for this picture.

The good: Short-run trip between the four innermost Silver Line stations (at least, the ones on the busway coming out of South Station)! On paper, this is supposed to alleviate any congestion on the SL1/2/3 during rush hour (I presume). However…

The bad: This route isn’t all that great with nerfed headways, especially given every SL1 I’ve seen is packed, and not so much the SL2 or SL3, and plus my trip was largely empty, save for Miles, Jackson, and co.

Nearby points of interest: Pretty much the waterfront district in its entirity, if you walk out of any given station. Downtown, if you leave South Station, as well as access to the Commuter Rail, Amtrak, and the Red Line and SL4.

Overall, on paper it’s not a terrible route. In fact, I’d argue it’s the best Silver Line route. Unfortunately, though, I’d limit this one to rush hour and special events only (of which neither conditions were true when I rode this). Plus, if you’re going between the three BRT stops along the shared section of the SL1/2/3, odds are you’re gonna be using whatever comes first heading inbound, and it probably won’t be this.

Rating: 7/10

Also, a post-publish edit: shoutouts to everyone who was there. Y’all legit are cool people, and to be real, I had a good time. And to Miles and Jackson, if you see this, best of luck on your cross-country trolleybus journey.

Silver Line Way (Silver Line)

Alrighty, the last of the Silver Line stations for today! Let’s delve into it. The station? Silver Line Way.

Now, for one, there’s nothing really special about Silver Line Way, other than the fact it’s where the diesel-overhead transition happens. That is, if the bus is an old Neoplan. The Xcelsiors (diesel hybrids and BEBs) don’t need to switch over because they don’t have pantographs. The only other things immediately at the station are a turnaround point for the short-turn Silver Line runs and a parking lot.

A normal bus next to a disabled bus….facing the wrong way?

The turnaround point, and that darn bus again.

Overhead catenaries and the bus’s pantographs

Wait, what the? Who’s this walking towards me and the small gathering of people? Not the shadowy figure! Oh god, no, not like this. Please, anything but this. No, no, NOOOOOOOO!!!

TO BE CONTINUED…

The good: It’s right on the waterfront, near a major concert venue.

The bad: …there’s not much else of any major note in the area. Delays are also likely should the handoff between diesel and overhead fail.

Nearby points of interest: The aforementioned concert venue and the waterfront.

Transit connections:
Silver Line (SL1, SL2, SL3, SLW)

Overall, it’s “meh.” If the bus is in the middle of the street, good luck if you need accessibility. The handoff works great if it goes well, but if it goes wrong, it goes REALLY wrong and can cause delays a plenty. But overall, I’d say it’s about average. It does suck if you’re here for 40 minutes in the searing heat, though.

Rating: 4.5/10

Chelsea (Silver Line)

Ooh, another Commuter Rail station! This time, it’s a CR-Silver Line transfer point, and it isn’t in downtown Boston! Neat! Wait, what’s that?

Oh god, no, ***NOT A GRADE CROSSING!!!***

The worst part of the above grade crossing, is that it’s the only way to the other side of the tracks. So, if you’re in a hurry, you best hope the train doesn’t force the gates down and block the street. The station itself is fine, though. You have shelters, modern countdown clocks, and a reasonable amount of benches. You also have a shelter and a turnarond point for the buses in the busway (yes, this is a Silver Line stop!) There also happens to be a bathroom here, too, but I think it’s for MBTA employees only. Nearby is also a connection to the 112 and 114, as well as what seems like the world’s largest Market Basket. As a fun tidbit, further up the busway, one can spot the old Chelsea Station right next to Bellingham Square. While track work upstream led to no trains while I was here, the fact there were people getting on and off the Silver Line stop does suggest there’s ridership.

The quiet platforms heading inbound to North Station

The old Chelsea Station, at Bellingham Square

The good: It links Chelsea to downtown Boston and the south side by way of rapid transit! It’s also useful for people trying to get to the north side by way of Commuter Rail, and more local areas by bus. There’s also a Market Basket here, along with some healthcare buildings nearby!

The bad: THAT. DARN. GRADE CROSSING. God, that irritates me SO MUCH.

Nearby points of interest: There’s Market Basket! There’s also some healthcare buildings in the area along with some state offices.

Transit connections:
Commuter Rail (Newburyport, Rockport)
Silver Line (SL3)
MBTA bus (112, 114, at Market Basket)

Overall, it’s a nice station. If I could change anything, it’d be that grade crossing, however that’d open up a whole can of worms I’m not ready for. I do like how it’s right at places where any reasonable person would want to go on any given day, too.

Rating: 7.5/10

World Trade Center/BCEC (Silver Line)

So, Courthouse was grossly overridden with construction. What about its neighbor, World Trade Center (or WTC/BCEC, as I’ll call it going forward in this post)?

Alrighty, so the mezzanine is far better than Courthouse’s, with only an escalator being down instead of 90% of the mezzanine. Unfortunately, there’s no in-station access to the World Trade Center or BCEC, and unlike Courthouse at least this station is built to accommodate whatever conventions happen at either the WTC or BCEC. There’s also a bridge over the busway so you can look down on the buses. One can also look outside to, well, the outside world. There’s also a map of both the entire rapid transit system and the Silver Line system specifically in the mezzanine, below the countdown clock.

The outbound countdown clock is kinda useless

The good: It’s an important stop along the Silver Line, serving both the WTC and BCEC. Even the bus announcements acknowledge the presence of the BCEC.

The bad: During times without any conventions or events at either the WTC or BCEC, the station doesn’t have the best of ridership figures. 1500 daily boardings in 2019. Yes, it’s pre-pandemic, but still. However, WTC/BCEC is built to accommodate any spikes in ridership due to conventions or expos, so the station feeling overbuilt makes sense, unlike Courthouse.

Nearby points of interest: Uhhhh, the BCEC and WTC? Duh.

Transit connections:
Silver Line (SL1, SL2, SL3, SLW)

Overall, while it seems like a boondoggle, and pointlessly overbuilt like Courthouse, it really isn’t. Most times, yes, it’s too big, but the space is important for any conventions and whatnot.

Rating: 7/10

Courthouse (Silver Line)

Oh my, some Silver Line stuff! So, the first stop past BOS is Courthouse. Let’s take a look. Is it overbuilt?

So, the platforms are relatively bare, with a bench to sit on. Nothing here. The station is also construction-ridden, and enough to where I ended up somewhere where I probably shouldn’t have been in. The ceiling in the mezzanine looks nice, though.

The other side and the do not cross sign

The good: It’s a direct link from downtown to the Joe Moakley Courthouse along the waterfront. I’d assume this is what most people end up using it for, that and other waterfront venues.

The bad: There’s no free crossovers (officially) in case you end up on the wrong side of the busway. Sure, you could hail Mary across the busway, but I wouldn’t suggest it. Also, the unholy amount of construction. Ridership isn’t the best either, with around 2500 weekday boardings happening here as of 2019. Not the best indicator either, but when I rode through here both times today, noone got on or off.

Nearby points of interest: Of course, there’s the Joe Moakley Courthouse. There’s also the Institute of Contemporary Art, which is probably the biggest attraction (and truthfully, should have the station renamed “Courthouse/ICA”)

Transit connections:
Silver Line (SL1, SL2, SL3, SLW)

Overall, it’s not the best Silver Line station. The biggest killer for me, construction aside, is the non-free crossover from inbound to outbound. Maybe I did it wrong, who knows. Nevertheless, it’s not the easiest station to stomach.

Rating: 5.5/10

28 (Mattapan-Ruggles via Nubian)

Alright, what’s the first thing that comes to mind when you hear “ghetto” and “Boston” in the same sentence? Roxbury? Alright, good, we’re on the same page. Now, I don’t have any pictures for this review since this one was just before I started doing T reviews. But, I’ll try my best anyways.

[FULL REWRITE PLACEHOLDER]

The good: It’s direct and bisects a low-income neighborhood! It’s also FREE (paid by the city of Boston), though I don’t know how long it’s lasting. It also serves a lot of people, with the high frequency to boot. Plus, it’s frequent! Most one has to wait is 20 minutes, and that’s usually on weekends when service is reduced.

The bad: The fact it serves so many people can also mean, if you get claustrophobic, this route might be problematic for you. The frequent stops also means that if you’re in a rush, it might not be the best option.

Nearby points of interest: Mattapan and Ruggles, of course! There’s also the areas in between in Roxbury, if you’re into local stuff.

Overall, it’s definitely one of those routes. One that is better off in its current state, despite its flaws. And, it’s free for the time being so there’s that as well.

Rating: 8.5/10

Mansfield (MBTA)

Ooh, Mansfield! It’s oftentimes said that getting a video of the Acela here is a rite of passage for essentially New England-based railfan. Besides, have you really lived until you’ve seen the Acela at 150mph?

The station as I was crossing to the other side

There’s the train from up Chauncy Street

The station building at North Common. It was closed, though.

So getting off the station, one can immediately see where most of the parking is. It’s a large field of parking essentially, and it was full to the brim. There’s even a grass lot that, from what I’ve heard, some people get creative with and use as a makeshift parking lot. However, I didn’t notice. But parking here is $4 a day. If you’re driving here, be mindful where you park since the lots along Mansfield Ave. and Winthrop Ave. require a residence permit. The station building itself looks nice, however it’s only open during the morning rush. This also happens to be where all the station amenities are. At minimum, it’d be nice if it were open all day, even if just for ticket sales, as it looks to be a nice area to wait during inclement weather.

The platforms are also quite nice, being brand spankin’ new. However….it’s only low-level, with a mini-high for accessibility. For a station that was largely rebuilt during the last 4 years, that’s all they could’ve done? I mean for crying out loud, Kingston (RI) had a rebuild in 2016-2017, AND they were able to add a third track for futureproofing for a potential MBTA or Shore Line East extension, all while also installing full-length high platforms. But here? All you get is a stinkin’ mini-high.

Looking down the platform towards Attleboro

Now, enough of me ranting. The mini-highs, while they feel a little jank, are nice. They’re all also on the Providence/Wickford end of the track. Meanwhile, you have relatively modern station signage, between the LCD signs that say “Welcome to Mansfield” and the train approaching warning, and the new MBTA countdown signs, which I think are in more recently renovated stations. I’m not sure on that, but I’ve mainly seen them here, in Sharon, Porter Square, Readville, and Back Bay. Not so much in Wickford or T.F. Green. Hell, I don’t even think Attleboro has them. At least you have a decent amount of benches and a wastebin on either side.

A closeup of the northbound mini-high. What does the yellow sign mean, anyways?

So, as I said earlier, to cross over you have to walk the sidewalk along Chauncy Street. This, normally, isn’t bad. However, there’s also the fact that the sidewalk isn’t very wide, and it can be a bit annoying in the height department if you’re tall like I am. But if you’re driving here, just remember to park on the correct side of the road, as there’s payment machines on both sides of the tracks.

Remember how I mentioned it’s a rite of passage for railfans to film here? That’s because the Acela goes 150 miles an hour here. Yup. One of the few spots where it can go max speed. Kingston is another popular spot, and I think it gets close at T.F. Green and Wickford (don’t quote me though).

You’ll also see a number of Regionals here, usually at max speed. Unfortunately though, you probably won’t see an express MBTA train, as their express sections typically end at Sharon.

The MBTA should invest in a couple of ACS64s for the Providence Line.

The good: It’s a decent park & ride station! Sure, parking isn’t free like at Wickford, but this is actually somewhere where people are willing to pay to park. And besides, it’s up there in the busiest stations outside Boston proper. #3 to be precise (for daily boardings), if we exclude fare zone 1A. #s 1 and 2 are Salem and Providence, respectively.

The bad: Two major complaints. 1, why is there no GATRA? I mean, yeah the 14o technically serves the station, but as far as I can find it’s like the 140 only existed on a map and not in practice. GATRA website? Nope, no schedule despite being on the system map. Google? Nope. So, why does GATRA advertise a route that doesn’t exist? Hell, why is there a bus stop sign if no buses even use the damn thing?! What kind of drugs is GATRA on, for crying out loud?! You want a bus that serves Mansfield Station, how about…you know what, never mind. It’s GATRA we’re talking and they probably can’t do jack shit right. Oh yeah, when I went to the 140’s page for this review, it 404’d on me. Gee, thanks GATRA. Forget I ranted completely about the 140. While I still stand that the 140 shouldn’t be on the official system map on the schedules page (it 404s), there IS, however, GATRA GO. GATRA GO is basically Flex, but with the added benefit of being on-demand. Complaint #2, ~~and this is waaaay less serious than the GATRA complaint (which, tbf, is on GATRA more than it is on the town of Mansfield or the T~~), is that the station building should be open in a minimal manner after the morning rush. Maybe just have a ticket person at the ticket desk? Or, for those who reverse commute, reopen the cafe in the evening rush?

Nearby points of interest: If you’re willing to walk a little, you have the town of Mansfield!

Transit connections:
Commuter Rail (Providence)
GATRA (GATRA GO)

Overall, it’s not a terrible station. It’s quite nice, actually. ~~However, I have to give it a major strike for GATRA being on drugs with regards to what would be the only bus connection~~ (once again, forget I ranted about GATRA, as I found out GATRA GO exists and is on-demand). It’s also a bummer that the station building is only open in the morning rush, but it’d be better if it were open (even if minimally) all day. It’s also nice how they rebuilt the otherwise decrepit station, though it still peeves me that it only has a mini-high platform.

Rating: 7.5/10
Original rating: 7/10

Fairmount Line (MBTA)

Alright, so we’ve done the longest Commuter Rail route. Now, let’s do the shortest. All aboard the next Fairmount train!

Yeah, for some reason the line ends at Readville instead of Fairmount. A bit of a weird choice but whatever. I got on the train and we were off to the races. Time to South Station from here is expected to take 30 minutes. First stop, Fairmount.

A few people got on at Fairmount, however we were largely off to the races again afterwards. The train started moving forward again.

Up next? Blue Hill Avenue. A lot of people got on here, mostly school-aged children. As such, because they’re a bunch of teenagers who are likely too stupid to know how to keep their voices down, things got very loud on the train. Moving further down the tracks, we reached the next stop.

A LOT of people got on at Morton Street. Like, it got worse. Nevertheless, from here, it was a straight shot to the next stop where not many people got on or off. Ah well.

Up next was Talbot Avenue, and a few people got off here thankfully. However, it wasn’t enough for a quiet train. We pressed on further through the tracks, and arrived at the next station shortly after.

Geneva! Well, it’s not Geneva, Switzerland, unfortunately. But whatever. A lot of people got off here, and from here we eventually passed a community center with …McDonald’s founder Ray Kroc’s name attached to it at Upham’s Corner????? Yeah, I don’t know on that one. Fortunately from here, it was just Newmarket and a straight shot to South Station. Eventually, we did make it to South Station.

The good: It bisects low-income neighborhoods, giving the people another opportunity to commute into downtown! It’s also relatively very frequent, at 45 minute headways.

The bad: WHY IS THIS EVEN A COMMUTER RAIL LINE INSTEAD OF A NEW SUBWAY LINE ENTIRELY, OR AN ORANGE LINE BRANCH?! At this point, the MBTA may as well convert into a new line. I dunno, color it indigo as a nod to the fact it’s a Commuter Rail line? Apparently, people ride this route, though not many, with around 2600 daily passengers as of 2018.

Nearby points of interest: Readville, if you’re into railfanning! Also, Mattapan, Hyde Park, and Dorchester are along the line.

Overall, it’s not a terrible route, but it feels like it’s a regional train line trying to also be rapid transit, and in a way feels like it’s failing at both. Just put the Fairmount Line out of its misery and turn it into a subway line, PLEASE.

Rating: 7/10

SL2 (Drydock Ave.)

Alright, my first rapid transit route review! …except, I use “rapid transit” loosely, since the Silver Line isn’t the BRT system that the MBTA makes it out to be. Nevertheless, if I’m trying to 100% the T, I have to ride the Silver Line routes.

So the route begins in the tunnels under South Station. Because the Silver Line is technically BRT, this section is in its own right of way along with catenary wires. Because the stop is in fare control, we didn’t have to pay and could board at any door. Soon enough, off to the ra- WOAH CRAP IT’S SO BUMPY IT’S NAUSEATING! Yeah…..the BRT busway is really, really terrible in quality. It made my friend nauseated, for crying out loud!

First up is Courthouse. This stop is located near the Moakley Federal Courthouse, as the name suggests. A few people got on but not many people got off here. Anyways, moving on.

Up next: World Trade Center! Nope, this isn’t New York! This stop corresponds to the Boston Convention & Exhibition Center near the waterfront. Again, not many people got on or off here. Moving on further and HOLY CRAP I SEE LIGHT!

Up next: Silver Line Way! Now, this stop is actually special for two reasons. First, it’s where short-turn SLW runs end. Second, it’s where the catenary-diesel handoff happens. Usually it takes about a minute at most, however if it goes wrong, it goes really wrong. Fortunately that didn’t happen. From here, we were in mixed traffic. We turned onto Haul Ave. and Northern Avenue. From here, we went left onto Drydock Ave., and looped around Drydock and Black Falcon Ave. From here, the route went back to South Station, as it runs in a loop.

The good: It serves the Seaport! It’s also a (mostly) rapid link between the Seaport and downtown Boston, with service to the Boston Exhibition Center and the Design Center.

The bad: THIS IS NOT BRT!!!! GOD DAMMIT MBTA, STOP CALLING IT BRT WHEN IT DOESN’T ADHERE TO BRT STANDARDS! Not even RIPTA is that bad with the R Line, because at least with that they MAKE it a point to not advertise it as BRT. And, it’s with this bad choice of labelling, that I have to give the SL2 not a great rating.

Nearby points of interest: Downtown Boston and the Seaport, really. Not much else.

Overall, STOP CALLING IT BRT!!! Ugh. Also, smoothen the busway going under the harbor. If you want BRT, at least give it dedicated bus lanes.

Rating: 4/10

Various SL2 street stops (MBTA)

Alright, guess I’ve resorted to reviewing literal street signs. Yikes. Where are they? Let’s see:
– Northern Ave. at Harbor St.
– Northern Ave. at Tide St.
– 23 Drydock Ave.
– 27 Drydock Ave.
– Drydock Ave. at Black Falcon Ave.
– Drydock Ave. at Design Center

Six bus shelters and street signs. But, since they’re part of the Silver Line, they count.

Drydock at Design Center. Yeah, I missed the Black Falcon sign when photographing all of them

They’re all literal street signs or bus shelters. I don’t have anything to say about these.

The good: The SL2 stops at all these, for what it’s worth

The bad: There’s nothing to say. It’s literally just a generic sign/shelter.

Nearby points of interest: Design Center and the seaport area.

Transit connections:
Silver Line (SL2)
MBTA bus (4)

Yeah, I got nothing to add. 1/10 rating for all these.