Red Line buses Kendall-Broadway 4/28-29

[boblothrope.livejournal.com]

Notices just appeared in some T stations saying the Red Line will run with shuttle buses between Kendall and Broadway, on the weekend of April 28-29.

http://www.mbta.com/about_the_mbta/news_events/?id=24375

The buses won't stop at Downtown Crossing. Which is no big deal, since it's only 1 block from Park Street.

This will allow power supply installation for the new Park Street elevators, and other station repairs.

I don't think I've ever experienced such an extensive shutdown. The most I've dealt with is Kendall-Park Street.

I'd recommend avoiding the entire Red Line that weekend. Even the parts that are running will have big delays.

(Multi-posted to the mbta community.)

Comments

[squirrelitude]

I don't think I've ever experienced such an extensive shutdown. The most I've dealt with is Kendall-Park Street.

You mean *besides* the Harvard <-> Alewife shutdown on weekends for several months? Or do you mean extensive in number of stops, not total station-days?

[boblothrope.livejournal.com]

Number of passengers and importance of stations affected. This cuts off the entire Red Line from the downtown transfer stations.

Fortunately it's just for one weekend. (But I suspect there will be more shutdowns like this for the Park Street elevator project.)

[squirrelitude]

Number of passengers and importance of stations affected.

Ah, fair point. Come to think of it, I'd actually be somewhat interested in comparing the number of people affected (for just one weekend) for those two closures.

[thespian.livejournal.com]

I am cursed with living in quincy, while my social life and friends and well....everything...are still in Davis Square.

the only way out of here is the red line. its been pretty crappy that it has been closed so damn much since I moved here, because I *know* it was not before, when I only used it to get to work.

[josephineave.livejournal.com]

It will also be a huge financial hit for the T. With this segment in the middle of the route rather than the end (like the Harvard to Alewife stoppage), they won't be able to charge passengers who start their trips on the shuttle bus, meaning you could get on at Kendall and access the other lines without paying at all.

[adrian-turtle.livejournal.com]

Especially on weekends in the spring and summer, I see people coming in from the northwest suburbs, parking at Alewife, and going downtown to do touristy stuff. I don't know if they'll drive to the museums and such, or just skip it. A bigger problem is all the people with suitcases getting off the Red Line at South Station. Some are taking the Silver Line to the airport, and others are taking Amtrak, but there seem to be an awful lot of them.

[ron_newman]

And some are going to the nearby bus station to take Peter Pan, Megabus, Bolt Bus, Fung Wah, etc.

[borgin.livejournal.com]

Wouldn't you still have to pay when you get on at Park Street to switch to the green line? (Or walk to Downtown Crossing for the orange...)

[josephineave.livejournal.com]

The problem is that it's almost impossible to segregate those who got to the bus via a paid fare (say you boarded at Alewife and got onto the shuttle at Kendall) from those who joined the shuttle as their entry point into the system. When they arrive at Park, for example, there isn't any way to only charge those who hadn't paid yet. Typically, the T just lets everyone from the shuttle through at once. It's only one way free for those who get on another line, but it does add up.

[borgin.livejournal.com]

Gotcha. Forgot the part where the T is actually running from Alewife to Kendall that weekend.

[boblothrope.livejournal.com]

In theory they could hand out paper transfers as you leave Kendall or Broadway to board the shuttle bus, which would get you back into the system after the bus ride. But I've never seen the T do this.

[cden4.livejournal.com]

They did this same closure for a weekend last year as part of the Park St elevator project. There were huge mobs of people outside Park St and Kendall and the buses were absolutely packed. It just shows you how many people the trains carry and how ill-suited buses are to do the job. If last year was any example, there will be torrential downpours while you wait outside for the buses as well.