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The MBTA should probably hope it doesn't need any favors any time soon from the Boston City Council

City Council President Michelle Wu often takes the Orange Line to work at City Hall - and often takes her two young sons with her (City Hall has a daycare center). Increasingly, she has problems making the transition from underground to City Hall Plaza, like today:

Ed. note: The T currently runs shuttle-bus service to Tufts Medical Center because the elevator there is out of service for scheduled maintenance.

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Comments

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She's the rare public official who actually uses the T, and is therefore aware of its issues and cares about it.

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Jay, Master of Lightning?

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Well, not that she and her kids get screwed like that, but that a) she actually takes the T and b) she is using her platform to, maybe, get something done about a problem that affects not just her, but other people (I mean, it's not like a few years ago when we had city councilors whining about how they deserved to have their parking tickets dismissed). Boston city councilors don't have a lot of direct power, but they do have a bully pulpit.

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Especially for local offices, people who experience life in a way similar to many of their constituents is a great thing.

Empathy over sympathy for their fellow citizens / voting public every day of the week.

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Great answer from Passenger Assistance. I guess if it isn't happening within three feet of their desk they can't assist you.

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Or they'e not privy to the maintenance contractors schedule, or maybe there was no ETA given. But hey, lets blame the low wage worker who is most likely left in the dark because management sucks, for not knowing every little detail with every little aspect of a crappy commuter system.

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Ms Wu called Passenger Assistance. What assistance did they offer?
"I'm not there so I don't know what to tell you."
Chances are the person answering the phone isn't going to be at the scene of the calls for assistance they receive.
So how does Passenger Assistance assist any passengers?

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Who's the Gordon Ramsay of public transit, and can we get them?

SHUT IT DOWN!

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From my own experience, it appears that, at times, that it seems to take longer periods of time for T elevators and escalators to be fixed. It would of been nice if the "passenger service" person could of let her know when it would be up and running. (How long as has this elevator been out of service?) And what do people in wheel chairs do?

I can understand her frustration.

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Councilors (and department heads) get a sweet, reserved parking space in the garage under city hall.

With a perk like that I wonder why she doesn't drive to work, especially with two small kids. Too hard to find street parking at home?

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Hard to believe, but some people practice what they preach - she believes in public transit and so uses it (she does have issues closer to home, but it's related to the choice between sitting in a bus that goes nowhere fast on Washington Street to Forest Hills or paying a lot more for a ride on commuter rail).

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half a dozen of the other when it comes to that commute. even tho getting to Forest Hills sucks on public transport it's still probably takes as much time door to door to drive as taking the T.

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Maybe she cares about the safety of her kids? They are much more safe on public transit than in a car. Maybe she cares of the safety of pedestrians? Maybe she cares about the health of Bostonians and doesn't want to give them lung cancer with dirty auto emissions? Maybe she is smart enough to do the math and realizes that a T pass is cheaper than driving? I'm just glad our City Council president is a responsible citizen.

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Three comments giving basically the same message. But this one particularly grazes me the wrong way despite it has the same message as the other two. Cars does not mean you have to write like some evil adversary. I'm being presumptuous, but I can sense the hate versus the other two responses that are also just giving the same message. And BTW, I also think it is a good thing she is riding the T even though she has a parking spot at City Hall.

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Kinopio would criticize Jack Kerouac for driving.

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thumbs up!

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"The best teacher is from experience and not through someone's distorted point of view."

"All he needed was a wheel in his hand and four on the road."

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Safe on the T? Public masturbaters, criminal pedestrians, drunks, junkies. Sure, the T is Utopia isn't it?

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Perhaps it's more restful to her to ride mass transportation than the effort of driving.

Perhaps it gives her a little face time with her kids instead of having to concentrate on the traffic.

Perhaps it's an effort to expose her kids to different bubbles some of the time.

Perhaps walking to and from the station and the bus stop with the kids and stroller helps her meet her step count goals.

Perhaps she has a high-stakes charity donation bet with Mike Dukakis on who can pick up the most deposit bottles from random litter before the end of the year.

Really, though - she's clearly out of touch with the common, bus-riding folk. That stroller is much too small for her smaller child - it should be twice as big! ...and a riding platform on it for the bigger kid!! She's probably one of those elitists who keeps the kid on her lap and folds the stroller instead of leaving it in the middle of the aisle in the front of the bus!

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Another fine outcome of the FCMB and Faker! /snark

There used to be CSA's at every single station. Now.. along the blue line. None. You might see one at Maverick (directing buses at street level) or maybe one this week at Airport. But most of the stations, including state have no personnel anymore.

Two faregates break down every week at Wood Island. If I do not tweet the T or open a ticket with them, they stay broken forever. This is because no one bothers to monitor Wood Island anymore, like the rest of the BL.

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"There used to be CSA's at every single station"

Really? I never saw them half the time playing hide & seek in employees only nap rooms

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You might want to get your eyes checked. I saw them.

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The Blue Line’s unloved step-child... Now that the station is unmanned, fare evasion happens daily. The other day a guy rushed to piggyback behind me, slipped and fell on his ass. I turned to him and said “that’s what you get.” Add to this the broken gate blocked only by a cone, and now it is even easier to evade the fare. Pennywise, pound foolish!..

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Would the MBTA ever need a favor from Boston's city council?

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Travels on roads owned by the city of Boston. Guess who has oversight over DPW and BTD projects that might affect those buses?

And the City Council has veto power over the city budget, which includes an $85 million (roughly) annual payment to the MBTA (yes, on top of what residents pay just to board a bus or train).

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There was a volunteer at downtown crossing whose job appears to be wishing good morning to everyone who walks by; maybe they should station such a person at state street to help carry strollers up the stairs.

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Who would make the best President/Chair for Public Meetings of Boston City Council?...

1) Zakim?
2) or Wu?
3) or Pressley?
4) or O'Malley?
5) or McCarthy?

6) or Janey?
7) or Flynn?
8) or Flaherty?
9) or Essaibi George?
10) or Edwards?

11) or Ciommo?
12) or Campbell?
13) or Baker?

Rules
https://www.boston.gov/departments/city-council/city-council-rules

Charter posted by City in unsearchable format
https://www.cityofboston.gov/images_documents/Boston%20City%20Charter_tc...

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I used to commute with my kids to City Hall. There's no elevator from Red to Orange at DTX if you're coming from Dorchester. You have to go all the way to Park. The elevators there are filled with piss. You also have to take two elevators within City Hall to get to the daycare because the floor plates don't align across the building. We only used the stroller for about a month (including because people on the T absolutely despised us), but with little kids still needed the elevator om occassion. There are so many problems needing resolution with the infrastructure, including accessibilty.

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Traveling with children is difficult and is a nightmare and dangerous when elevators aren't work. Not everyone owns a car and even if they do own a car or driveway the T should be accessible reliable and safe to use. Brand new Ashmont station elevator smelled so bad of pee - I think with everyone glued to their phones civility is less as people ignore everything around them.

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