Keolis regrets to inform passengers it will not be providing service to the Taylor Swift concert at Gillette next month

By adamg on Fri, 06/19/2015 - 11:33am

.@MBTA @ChelsaMarie17 @taylorswift13 We hope you can Shake It Off and there won't be any Bad Blood. Will ours still be a Love Story?

— MBTA Commuter Rail (@MBTA_CR) June 19, 2015

Topics:

Entertainment

The T

Free tagging:

Commuter rail

Ad:

Like the job UHub is doing? Consider a contribution. Thanks!

Comments

I knew they were trouble when

By Fredly on Fri, 06/19/2015 - 11:45am.

I knew they were trouble when they walked in...

more apt for the MBTA itself, but whatever

By Malcolm Tucker on Fri, 06/19/2015 - 11:52am.

Got a long list of ex-managers,
They'll tell you I'm insane
But I got an open GM position, baby,
And I'll write your name

In all fairness

By ChrisInEastie on Fri, 06/19/2015 - 11:56am.

They can't even consistently provide regular service, so I guess it wouldn't be fair to expect extra service.

Gillette concerts have never appealed to me on the basis of spending more time getting there and back than at the actual concert alone. Glad the Foo Fighters opted for Fenway this summer.

Foo Fighters

By Grizzly Mama on Fri, 06/19/2015 - 12:01pm.

cancelled the rest of their European tour due to Dave Grohl's broken leg. Is Fenway really going to happen?

According to the Globe

By ChrisInEastie on Fri, 06/19/2015 - 1:33pm.

The shows are still on.

Obviously that could change, but some quick research says the fibula isn't a weight bearing bone, and a return to activity (including sports) can take weeks to months, depending. The first show of that tour is still 2 weeks away and Boston is a month from yesterday and today, so hopefully all goes well. Even with it not being a weight bearing bone, it can affect the ankle, so I wouldn't expect him to be standing much night after night with a guitar on, but I'd expect him to be able to play.

If he needed screws put in, I

By anon on Fri, 06/19/2015 - 4:03pm.

If he needed screws put in, I would be surprised if he could perform in a month.

But don't the routinely offer

By AllstonHipster on Fri, 06/19/2015 - 1:31pm.

But don't the routinely offer extra service for football?

I find it baffling that the

By tape on Fri, 06/19/2015 - 1:33pm.

I find it baffling that the MBTA can't get it together enough to run trains to every event at Gillette.

World class

By ChrisInEastie on Fri, 06/19/2015 - 1:34pm.

baby!

It's amazing

By Michael on Fri, 06/19/2015 - 1:39pm.

A good friend of mine is a huge soccer buff and has to go through the same routine every year.
1) She orders tickets to a few Revolution games
2) Revs rep calls her and asks if she wants to order season tix
3) She patiently explains that taking a Zipcar to Foxboro many many times a year makes no sense financially and is a terrible idea, but if they could run an MBTA train or even a shuttle bus to the stadium, she'd almost certainly go for it.
4) Revs rep says, yeah, we get that a lot, and glumly disconnects.

But you know, why would they want to make life easier for anybody.

Someone has got to pay

By BostonDog on Fri, 06/19/2015 - 2:52pm.

It's possible the MBTA has done the math and found that they would lose lots money on these trains and it makes no sense to subsidize single a private corporation. (Unlike the Cape Flyer which helps the whole region.)

I have no idea if the train would lose money or not but I wouldn't be too hard on the T if that's the case.

The real question would be why would the stadium not rent a shuttle bus from Boston to event for things like this. Even if they charged people an extra few bucks for the ride they'd still come out ahead.

The MBTA actually leases that

By JeffT on Fri, 06/19/2015 - 3:01pm.

The MBTA actually leases that spur line from a freight company I believe during football games. That is why there are only I think 2 or 3 trains down and then they sit there and leave 30min after the game ends.

Actually as of yesterday the

By DTP on Fri, 06/19/2015 - 3:58pm.

Actually as of yesterday the T fully owns the Framingham Secondary, all the way from Mansfield to Framingham.

technically, the MBTA did not

By cowsandmilk on Sat, 06/20/2015 - 6:30am.

technically, the MBTA did not buy this section of track. MassDOT did. And the upgrades they will be paying for in the near future will help increase freight on those tracks. Incidentally, it will help some with passenger rail, but the primary goal in this purchase was to increase freight.

Oh of course, but either way

By DTP on Sun, 06/21/2015 - 3:46pm.

Oh of course, but either way it's under state ownership now.

I have taken the train 4

By el bobo on Fri, 06/19/2015 - 4:13pm.

I have taken the train 4 times to a Pats game . I have paid a grand total of zero to use this service . No wonder they are going broke.

Doesn't have to be the stadium

By HenryAlan on Fri, 06/19/2015 - 4:41pm.

Why can't private operators run event shuttles? If there is demand for such a service, it could be profitable (full buses require no subsidy).

They Do

By BlackKat on Sat, 06/20/2015 - 9:28am.

While I can not say if one runs a shuttle to this particular concert, I have taken ones to Great Woods [or whatever it is called now] in the past. And even on a smaller scale they have shuttles that go the tiny distance between the Pru parking garage and Symphony Hall on concert nights.

They don't care

By anon on Fri, 06/19/2015 - 4:56pm.

They'll sell out with or without the train and make lots of money from the outrageous parking fees.

The Revs don't sell out

By A. Lalas on Sat, 06/20/2015 - 3:55pm.

play at Gillette more often than Taylor Swift, and more than the Cheatriots. But remain one of the least-attended soccer teams in the league. Soccer fans are a lot more likely to take public transportation too. This is why they need to build a soccer-only stadium at the old Wonderland site. But it won't happen because the Kraft family owns the team and the current stadium.

Maybe on a weekend?

By Ari O on Fri, 06/19/2015 - 2:36pm.

But they can't even get enough equipment for daily rush hour service.

To make money, they probably would have to sell 700 $15-round-trip tickets for an event at Foxboro. They know they can sell out a Patriots train, probably. A Revs game or a concert is probably more of a crapshoot.

If I didn't deal with the

By anon on Fri, 06/19/2015 - 4:01pm.

If I didn't deal with the MBTA on a regular basis, I would concur with your statement.
That I do deal with the MBTA on a regular basis, I would be more likely to concur with a statement such as, "I find it baffling the MBTA can get it together enough to run any sort of transit system at all."