Mt. Vernon East is the last station on the New Haven Line before entering NYC proper. So, is there even anything of note here? I actually don’t know, but let’s look at it, shall we?
Station signage!
The station is your standard 4 tracks/2 sides setup with express tracks in the middle going unserved. There’s a pedestrian overpass with elevator access, but no heated waiting area. Furthermore, you have a lot of parking to go around here, and there’s even a ticket office that was closed. To the west of the station, there’s also a busway (I didn’t know it existed when I came here). Furthermore, there’s ticket machines in the aforementioned overpass. Neat. Just one annoying thing: as I was reviewing this station, I ran into a bunch of teenagers HOTBOXING the station overpass. YES, I REPEAT, THERE WERE A BUNCH OF TEENAGERS SMOKING A BIG FAT DOINK IN THE OVERPASS FILLING IT UP WITH THE FUMES OF THE DEVIL’S LETTUCE! OH DEAR GOD! AND THE SAD PART IS – THIS WAS THE ONLY PLACE ONE CAN KEEP WARM AT THE STATION!
Towards New Haven!The other side!Overpass!Platform shotParking!View from the overpass!And a view towards the Bronx!Ticketing machines!The shuttered ticket officeThe headhouseThe kiss & ride?EXPRESS!!!
The good: It’s in a pretty dense area and is right next to Mt. Vernon’s town center! While it’s not in a rich suburban area like Mamaroneck or Harrison, it’s still in a pretty major center for activity. Bus connections are also close by!
The bad: THE PEDESTRIAN OVERPASS IS THE ONLY PLACE TO STAY WARM ON A COLD DAY, AND A BUNCH OF FUCKING TEENAGERS WERE HOTBOXING THE DAMN THING. OH GOD….
Nearby points of interest: Mt. Vernon’s town center is next to here. There’s also an industrial area and suburbia nearby too.
Transit connections: Metro-North (New Haven) Bee-Line (7, 41, 43, 53, 54, 55 at East Prospect & North 3rd Ave.’s)
Overall, it’s an alright station. However, admittedly, I’m biased against the station because it was too windy and there was nowhere to stay warm when I did this station review. Sorry! On the upside, I kinda want to explore Mt. Vernon some more.
Pelham is a station in the namesake village in Westchester County, New York. The station itself is located in suburban sprawl and is largely unassuming. However, there’s something a little special here though…
Station signage!
So, the station itself is pretty bogstandard at face value. You have heated waiting areas outside, benches, wastebaskets, a tunnel to change sides, and a shuttered station house. Much like the rest of the New Haven Line, there’s also plenty of parking to go around. Unfortunately, though, it’s only partly accessible. Pelham itself is also pretty suburban, so sadly it doesn’t really stand out that much either. However, for railfanning, there IS something that stands out. So, Metro-North uses both third rail and overhead catenary for electrification on the New Haven Line. Where does the change-over happen? Well, it actually happens in the Pelham area. Or, rather, the change-over happens anywhere between Mt. Vernon (where the catenary begins) and the curve approaching New Rochelle (about as far as a train can coast without power).
An M8The catenary AND, if you look carefully, you might also see third rail!See ya!Heated waiting area!Southbound train!Parking!Tunnel!Slightly less sketch than Larchmont!Station headhouse!Pelhamwood Ave.!Some green space!Bee-Line!
The good: It’s a cool spot to railfan with Metro-North changing power sources here! Furthermore, it’s a decently sized park & ride station and there’s some shopping and restaurants nearby.
The bad: There isn’t as much as around the rest of the New Haven Line stations in New York. Yeah, sorry! It also isn’t fully accessible. 🙁
Nearby points of interest: There’s a 9/11 memorial nearby! Yeah, sorry, not a lot here.
Transit connections: Metro-North (New Haven) Bee-Line (53)
Overall, I just don’t have anything special to remark. Yeah, sorry. 🙁 But at least you can railfan a power change!
New Rochelle is one of the busiest stations on Metro-North’s New Haven Line between the city limits and Stamford (this, of course, excludes Stamford, Fordham, Harlem-125th, and Grand Central). Also at the station can be found the bus terminal for Bee-Line and other things. Let’s look at it.
So, New Rochelle is honestly a nice little station. The station house looks unique in the middle of a mini-downtown with high rises and whatnot, for one. The station layout is also unique because of how the interlockings are set up. For context on this, the Northeast Corridor splits off from the line to Grand Central just past here, and the way the interlocking is set up only allows for NEC trains to cross over before the station. The platforms are pretty normal, with departure boards lining them. You also have heated waiting areas – and the station building is OPEN! Sweet! Going inside, you have MTA transit police and a ticket office, the Quik-Trak machine, and a cafe. There’s even some artwork lining the walls and a departure board. Neat! I actually ordered some food here and it’s alright, for what it is. You also have an overpass, which harbors an entrance, and the New Rochelle Transportation Center. This has a busway for Bee-Line buses, a parking garage, and a car rental facility. Why the fuck is there even a car rental facility? I don’t know, but whatever. Moving right along!
An M8!Towards StamfordTowards the splitHeh, nice…Overpass shot!Elevator shot!The sheltered area on track 3The New Rochelle Transit Center!And another shot of the busway!The ticket office!The departure board and some art!An M8!A pair of M8sOnwards!Now THIS is a vibe!
The good: The station’s just so charming, being a small station headhouse in the middle of an urban center. Furthermore, even the inside is charming with the artwork being painted on the walls and AAAAAAAA IT’S JUST SO AMAZING. The platforms are also serviceable with the heated waiting areas in the cold, too. Amtrak boarding is also clearly signed, always being tracks 2 and 4. On top of all this, there’s also plenty of parking and even rental scooters from what I was told (though I didn’t see any. Thanks, David, for telling me about this!).
The bad: I can’t help but feel it’s out of place somewhat. Also, it’s up against I-95, though that’s less of an issue here. The busway also feels dingy due to being in a parking garage, so there’s that…
Nearby points of interest: Downtown New Rochelle is close by! Furthermore, you have Bee-Line buses.
Overall, I really find this station to be quite charming and a nice place to railfan, and quite truthfully I kinda want to come back and explore New Rochelle further in the future and check out Bee-Line Bus.
Oh fuck, not this again. WAHT? I CAN’T HEAR YOU OVER THE WHIRRING OF THE CARS ON I-95!!! WHELP, GUESS I’LL HAVE TO YELL IN THIS LIKE I HAD TO WITH FREAKIN’ NEWTONVILLE. ANYWAYS, HERE WE GO. HOPEFULLY I DON’T RUN MY MOUTH DRY OR INHALE TOO MANY GASOLINE FUMES!
THE DAMN STATION SIGNAGE
SO, LARCHMONT IS RIGHT NEXT TO I-95, IN FACT I’D ARGUE IT’S CLOSER TO I-95 THAN THE MASS PIKE IS TO NEWTONVILLE. IT’S SO CLOSE THAT THE STATION PARKING LITERALLY HAS TO REST ATOP THE EXPRESSWAY. ANYWAYS, WHAT IS HERE? WELL, NOT MUCH ACTUALLY. A WHOLE LOTTA SHOPPING BUT IT’S THE ASS SIDE OF SAID BUILDINGS AS THERE’S OOPS! ALL PARKING! YOU ALSO HAVE SOME STUFF LINING PALMER AVE. AND WHATNOT. THERE’S ALSO SOME GREENSPACES NEARBY. NEAT! AS FOR THE OTHER SIDE, YOU HAVE A TUNNEL GOING ALL THE WAY TO THE OTHER SIDE OF I-95 AND A TICKET OFFICE. LET’S CHECK IT OUT!
*enters ticket office, is quieter*
Okay, I can actually talk at a reasonable volume here! So, the ticket office is small but surprisingly it’s unlocked. There’s also some seats in here as well, and overpasses. Good Service? What the hell is that supposed to mean? Oh well.
SEE YA!LOOKING TOWARDS PENN STA.-NEW YORKAND TOWARDS STAMFORD AND NEW HAVENLOTS AND LOTS OF PARKING AND THE ASS SIDE OF BUSINESSES!THIS IS KINDA SKETCHYOH MYTHE OTHER SIDEYEH, VERY DINGY!LOOKING FROM THE PENN/GRAND CENTRAL PLATFORMI SPY A HEATED WAITING AREAThe ticketed waiting room. Surprisingly, was unlocked!Even when closed, you can smell the cafe!Overpass shot!Bleh.The overpass and an exit to parkingGOOD SERVICE? The fuck does that mean?!OH JOY, THE TICKET OFFICE FROM AFARNEXT TO ARRIVE ON TRACK FOUR!M8!
The good: IT’S NEXT TO THE TOWN CENTER, KINDA! THAT’S KINDA EASY THOUGH WHEN THE ENTIRE DAMN TOWN IS SUBURBAN SPRAWL OTHERWISE. THE TICKET OFFICE IS UNLOCKED DURING OFFPEAK HOURS TOO!
The bad: IT’S FUCKING NEXT TO I-95 AND YOU CAN’T HEAR A DAMN THING!
Nearby points of interest: THE TOWN CENTER AND SOME GREEN SPACES. NOT A LOT ELSE, REALLY.
Next stop on the line is Mamaroneck! Now, this one is pretty popular for Amtrak and Metro-North railfanning because this and Larchmont are on the fastest stretch of track between New Haven and New Rochelle (where the lines split), with speeds up to 80 miles an hour. So, let’s look at this station, shall we?
Signage!
The northbound platform is the usual, has seating and sheltered waiting areas, but nothing special. The southbound platform, however, has a ticket office – AND IT WAS OPEN! Well, more like a ticket room with vending machines but hey, it counts! Furthermore, there’s a tunnel connecting the two sides and, I think, the Italian restaurant that sits in the old station headhouse. I haven’t had the chance to try it myself personally, but I heard it’s good. Furthermore, the station is in a decent enough area as well with a decent walkshed. Neat!
See ya!Towards Stamford!The local streetsWHY THE FUCK ARE THERE SHOPPING CARTS HERE?!The tunnel to the other side and the restaurantThe ticket office and parkingInside the ticket “office”Express!
The good: It’s in a walkable area and there’s an open ticket office! Neat! Furthermore, there’s a restaurant in the old headhouse as well. Aside from that, it’s pretty normal.
The bad: The tunnel feels a little dingy, not gonna lie…
Nearby points of interest: There’s a park nearby and shopping along Mamaroneck Ave.! There’s also a beach somewhat close by.
Transit connections: Metro-North (New Haven) Bee-Line (60, 61)
Overall, it’s an alright station. The area itself is nice, and it’s worth railfanning here during the warmer season. However, the tunnel feels kinda dingy though…
Next stop is Harrison! So, like Rye, the walkshed around here is pretty decent, but it’s even better in that you have some TOD as well. Neat! Let’s take a look, shall we?
Station sign!A more normal sign
So, the station is located in the main population center of Harrison, adjacent to the town center and some TOD. There’s a ticket office on the inbound platform, however I didn’t notice if it was open or not. The platforms are still your standard affair with an overpass, parking, elevators, and so on. At the point of me doing this, it was beginning to reach the PM peak and I had to make haste before any weirdness in the timetables kicked in (& peak fares! Yikes!), so I wasn’t here TOO long. However, bus connections are found on Halstead Ave. and NY-127, and plenty of parking can be found. The overpass also serves as an entrance as well. Neat! All things considered, it’s normal.
The evening winter sunLooking towards Stamford & BostonThe overpass and an exitOverpass shot!And the other way!Some TOD?The ticket office. I wasn’t sure if it was open or not.An M8Bye!
The good: It has some TOD! Furthermore, there’s plenty of parking and Bee-Line connections! On top of all that, the area is relatively walkable as well! Nice! There’s also nearby green spaces and even the town clerk’s office adjacent to the station as well.
The bad: Eh, it’s about average. There’s nothing wrong that stands out, but the biggest issue boils to the trains terminating here can sometimes create gaps in the timetable that can be annoying to work around if heading north during the PM peak.
Nearby points of interest: The town center looks interesting! Furthermore, you can get to Yonkers from here by bus!
Transit connections: Metro North (New Haven) Bee-Line (5, 61)
Overall, it’s an okay station. It’s average at everything, it works, but nothing really makes it stand out too much. There’s TOD though!
Well, I did it. I started to trek deeper and closer to the heart of NYC. This, along with several other entries, are part of an adventure I decided to go on, on my 23rd birthday (happy belated birthday to myself!). So, first stop for this blog is Rye, NY.
Station signage!
The station itself is pretty standard, but slightly unusual in that there’s not one but two overpasses. There’s also heated waiting areas on both sides of the track, which on a cold and windy day is VERY, VERY HELPFUL. There’s also a ticket office that, sadly, like at most commuter stations on the NEC, was closed. However, here, they cited “staffing shortages and a remodel.” but it looked like it wasn’t touched in several months. Uhhhhhhhhh….. At least the station’s fully accessible with elevators, though! Yay! And, there’s a lot of parking and even Bee-Line connections!
Parking and catenary!An M8!That overpass is US-1.Looking towards Penn Station and Grand Central!Overpass shot!Another overpass shot!Parking on the southbound side – and I-95This train ran express.The ticketing office, which was closedNot sure how long since someone’s been here…
The good: It’s got some parking, Bee-Line connections, and a somewhat decent walkshed! There’s plenty of shopping and restaurants to the south, and a residential neighborhood to the north. Unfortunately though that requires crossing I-95.
The bad: Eh, the bus connections are infrequent at the station proper, and you’d have to walk to NY-120 for regular connections to Bee-Line’s 61 to New Rochelle, Fordham, and Port Chester. The 13 only brings you to Ossining, Tarrytown, and Playland at select times. Also, I-95 is literally right next to the station. 🙁
Nearby points of interest: You have the aforementioned shopping area south of the station, along with a country club.
Transit connections: Metro-North (New Haven) Bee-Line (13 at station proper, 61 at NY-120)
Overall, it’s an okay station. If anything, I’d say it’s about average with not a lot to make it stand out. Sorry! But, sometimes that’s a good thing.
The 31 is a very short route. In fact, I’d go as far as to label it as a “short and sweet” type. However, during the Great Race to Mattapan, Alex, Nick, and I managed to ride this route in its entirity, leading to a route review becoming possible. So, what’s along the route? Let’s look.
This bus was actually behind schedule – and it worked out perfectly!
The 31 originates at Forest Hills, and after banging a u-ey out of the lower busway onto Hyde Park Avenue, turns onto Morton Street immediately, passing by some apartments and Shattuck Hospital. Going down this section of Morton Street, you have the Forest Hills Cemetery on one side and Franklin Park on the other, and soon enough we were in Mattapan. We took a right down Blue Hill Ave., progressed down the street into Mattapan Square, passing the Fairmount Line, banging another u-ey after ever so slightly entering Milton, and entering Mattapan’s outer busway. All in all, about 20-30 minutes to cover three miles and change. Not bad, given ridership was mainly “everyone got on at Forest Hills, everyone got off along Blue Hill Ave.”
Not a true diner – but it still says so in the nameHousing!Greenery!Mind the dead!More housing!Much of the same – is this a gated community?Gas station!Bus reflection!The sky doesn’t look inspiringA church!Hello, Fairmount Line!Mattapan Square!Uh oh…The 716…
The good: It’s a short and sweet, and direct, connection between the Orange and Mattapan Lines. It’s also very frequent, being every 15 minutes (or better) on weekdays, and every 18-20 minutes on Saturdays, and 20-25 minutes on Sundays. Weekend headways aren’t the best, but it’s pretty good still.
The bad: It can feel like a drag sometimes with local Boston traffic. Oh well! It’s still faster than going up the Orange Line and doubling back on the Red Line! Yeah, I’m grasping for straws on this one. It really oughta be a key route though…
Nearby points of interest: Forest Hills, Mattapan Square, and Franklin Park are the big ones that come to mind. Shattuck Hospital, too.
Overall, for what it is, it does the job very well. I can’t think of anything negative about it, however it really ought to be a key bus route.
ALRIGHTY! I was NOT anticipating this when a national emergency was declared over the I-195 bridge closure in December. Well, given it just got announced that it’s ending in two weeks due to low ridership, I decided, at 4:15 AM on the day of writing this (1/6/24), that I’m going to ride this ferry and see what it’s like. With that in mind, let’s look at the ferry, shall we?
Yep. There’s a shuttle.
Now, I WOULD ride the shuttle for the full experience. However, there’s one issue with that: I’m doing this on a Saturday – and the shuttles don’t run on weekends. This means, I’m at the behest of bus routes 35, 60, and 78 on the Providence end (& even then, the closest stop is right before I-195), and route 60 on the Bristol end. Yikes. That translates to a combination of (presumably) uncoordinated headways of 30, 90, and 45 minutes on one end, and 30 minutes on the other (fortunately it’s one route in Bristol!). Anyhow! I got on the second run of the 13, went all the way into Providence, and to the ferry dock. In terms of what awaited me? It’s basically the Newtonville of ferry docks: very barebones and next to I-195. Eww. 1/10 rating from me.
Yep. That’s the entire ferry terminal. Quite sad, to be real.
Upon boarding the ferry though, it was quite nice actually. You have restrooms, a lot of seating, provisions for food amenities (not used), and even television service on the boat I rode down to Bristol. In terms of comfort vs. things that I normally ride, I’d have to actually say this is about on par with an Amfleet. For context, I LOVE the Amfleets with how comfy the seats are and the legroom. Honestly, I’m not sure if the Ventures out west can beat them. Eventually, we got moving and were on the high seas for about 35-40 minutes, before we docked at Bristol’s ferry terminal. So, how was that?
I was the only one up here.The Bristol terminal
The Bristol terminal was a different story. It’s a small parking lot, yes, but you also have an actual park in the area as well, with benches. You also have shopping in the area as well, which is nice. No sheltered waiting room, though, but meh. Rating: 4/10.
A park and the marinaSome shoppingSEASTREAK!!!!!!!!Bye!!!!!!!Onwards!Local charter tour busMy return trip
So, why is RIDOT canning the ferry service? Well, I’ve seen many arguments online with people saying “it’s a waste of taxpayer money” and all that usual bullshit. And, to an extent, I might be inclined to agree. However, just saying that alone and not doing an autopsy isn’t good enough for me. While local ridership exists, it’s currently just too niche a thing for more people to use regularly. For one, it just isn’t convenient in comparison to RIPTA’s bus route 60. Take a look at this.
Would “paddle” be appropriate, like with bus runs?
There’s a 3 hour gap midday for servicing and the crew to take their breaks. I mean, I understand that these people need to take breaks legally (& I can’t fault them for wanting one), and the boats need to be serviced occasionally, but there really ought to be some way to mitigate the gap in service. Never mind this, it’s the middle of winter. Only the bravest of souls are going to sail the high seas at this time of year. And, most of all, PVD-Bristol isn’t really that big a commuter market. I mean, if anything, PVD-Bristol is a spring/summer/fall route, not something you’d run in the winter. Seriously, RIDOT, I’d WANT to ride this more if it ran in the spring or summer!!! Even if fares were $4 or smth, and it were under the RIPTA umbrella! Actually, if anything, I’d argue a case where RIPTA gets proper funding AND additional funding to take on the state’s ferry network, presumably contracted out to Seastreak. Also, shoutout to the friendly people working the boats at Seastreak.
With all that in mind, I’d actually have to give the ferry service itself an 8/10. I mean, it’s reasonably fast, or at least time-competitive with RIPTA’s 60, and the Bristol terminal is in a central location. The biggest issues here boil down to the Providence terminal basically being another Newtonville, and with minimal bus connections (& no references to the ferry on said buses). The midday gap is also bleh, I get it exists for servicing reasons, but it hinders the usability of the ferry. Overall though, it’s pretty good, and I wish RIDOT wasn’t prematurely killing it off.
Oh, goody! We get to check out the first of several express buses on the MBTA network! Well, let’s look at them all and what’s in store…Lynn, Oaklandvale, Brighton, Waltham, Watertown, Salem, and …North Burlington??? Huh, that’s not a lot. Well, I’ll be sure to cover all of them eventually. In the interim, however, here’s Lynn’s express bus. Meet: the 426- WAIT IT COSTS $4.25?! WHAT THE FUCK, THAT’S EVEN MORE THAN A SUBWAY FARE!!!!! HOLY FUCK! Oh dear…
Welcome to downtown…So long, car dependency…City Hall!
So, all seven express bus routes originate at various points in downtown Boston (the 354 originates at Government Center, the 426, 428, and 450 originate at Haymarket, and the 501, 504, and 505 originate at Downtown Crossing) and take various highways out to the suburbs. In the case of the 426 and 428, they run locally out to Charlestown ever so slightly before getting on US-1 and the Tobin Bridge. This is where the unholy $4.25 fare comes in. That surcharge – THAT DAMN SURCHARGE IS TO COVER THE TOLL ON THE TOBIN BRIDGE! Anyways, we expressed down US-1 for quite a bit and got off the Squire Road exit. From here, it was pretty much just a normal local bus. Weekend runs originate at Wonderland instead and carry a normal $1.70 bus fare. Moving on, the route runs through Saugus and through Cliftondale Square, turning down Lincoln Avenue and crossing the Saugus River into Lynn. Of course, it was stop and go traffic (it’s Lynn), and it took a bit from here. However, eventually, after crawling the streets of Lynn, we made it to the old Commuter Rail station’s busway, making it to the end of the route.
Onwards!Crossing the CharlesWOOOOOO CROSSING DA TOBIN BRIDGE!!!!!!CHELSEAAAAAAAA!!!!!!!!The sprawl of the inner North ShoreEXIT ->Water!FUCK YOU, JEFF BOZO!A turn signSuburbia!DUNKIES!!!!!More housing!Towards the Saugus RiverThe Saugus River!GASSSSSSSS!Oh hell, traffic…Some density?Mind the dead!Armory!Near the end…The Lynn busway!
The good: It gives people in Lynn and Saugus an alternative to the Blue Line and Commuter Rail into Boston! Also, it’s a local bus for these areas! And, on top of that, ridership is decent both at Haymarket and beyond US-1.
The bad: THAT. $4.25. FARE. OH HELL NAW!
Nearby points of interest: Didn’t see much along the route, sadly…
Overall, the route’s important and it’s very important indeed, both as a downtown direct and a suburban local route. However, that fare though……ugh.
Rating: 6/10. Would’ve been a 7 if the fare was $2.40 or less.
