The T

Major delays in both directions after a switch near Park Street mistakenly puts on a red shirt. Dr. McCoy can only sigh: "I'm a doctor, not a track worker!"

The Herald reports not long after arresting Hot Dog Guy at Forest Hills, transit cops rushed to Copley Square on the Green Line to arrest a guy in a Superman shirt screaming at riders and threatening them with an expandable metal baton.

Transit Police report arresting an itinerant hot-dog vendor who tried opening up one of the food stands inside the Orange Line station this morning without a permit - but with several outstanding warrants.

Police say a T worker called police around 5 a.m. when he realized something wasn't kosher, because the guy setting up the carts was not one of its usual workers.

Officers managed to ketchup with and grill Dana Reis, 56, of Medford; in fact, he was still at the cart when they arrived:

Well, looks like somebody was trying to liven up the job of cleaning commuter-rail trains - or maybe just welcoming those new Korean coaches coming online. Peter did the photographic honors.

Earlier:
The greatest example of MBCR train upkeep ever.

Transit Police report they're looking for this guy for going balls to the wall on a hurtling Red Line train Sunday night.

According to police, the dude exposed himself to passengers on an outbound Red Line train between North Quincy and Wollaston around 9:50 p.m. He complemented his display with lewd comments - and a hairy-sac "Tea Bag" T-shirt.

If he looks familiar, contact detectives at 617-222-1050 or text an anonymous tip to 617-222-1050.

A German magazine takes note of the MBTA's rebooted train service to Cape Cod, or, as it's called in German, Cape Cod.

Die Züge starten von der South Station in Boston und sind damit gut ans MBTA-Netz, den öffentlichen Nahverkehr der Hauptstadt, angebunden. Nach Zwischenhalt in Buzzards Bay erreicht der Zug nach zweieinhalb Stunden Hyannis auf Cape Cod.

Service on the B Line was interrupted briefly around 1:30 p.m. by a family of ducks - and bystanders trying to convince them trolley tracks are not really all they're quacked up to be. MBTA spokesman Joe Pesaturo reports on the incident on Comm. Ave. near Blanford:

Approaching the tunnel portal, a trolley operator spotted a small group of people chasing some ducks on the Green Line right-of-way. The trolley operator stopped, and notified a Green Line supervisor. Service was interrupted for twelve minutes while the humans and waterfowl were cleared from the right-of-way.

Jamison Kissh adds workers from BU Facilities also joined in the duck hunt.

MBTA say this guy is wanted for indecent assault and battery for an incident that happened last Tuesday at Park Street.

According to police, "a female victim was inappropriately assaulted" by him while they were getting on a C trolley.

He's described as 25-30. In addition to his red T-shirt, he wore a gray hoodie with black horizontal stripes, blue jeans and sneakers.

If you know him and are disgusted, contact Transit Police at 617-222-1050 or send an anonymous text tip to 873873.

Move it!

Happened around 11:10 a.m. at 5 Cambridge Center, AlertNewEngland reports.

Robert Love, who took the photo, reports:

Leak so big, it sounded like a fire hose.

UPDATES: NStar got the gas turned off around 11:40 a.m. Robert Love reported at 12:40 that the streets were re-opened and that people were being let back into their offices - except 3-5 Cambridge Center.

The excavator that caused the commotion. Photo by Robert Love.

Last month, the MBTA announced a contest in which anyone could design what could be the next MBTA map.

Transit Maps has not one, but two contest submissions posted for our viewing pleasure. While no submissions have been officially heralded by the MBTA at this time, it is clear that some very talented cartographers are partaking in the festivities.

The MBTA had previously announced a deadline of April 30, 2013, however no mention of the contest has been made since the original announcement of the contest.

BFD response to mystery boom. Photo by Victoria Bedford.

Around 8:50 p.m., Boston firefighters and Transit Police rushed to the area of Arlington and Boylston streets after several people reported hearing a loud explosion. Cara Terez, sitting on the Rattlesnake roof deck, tweeted:

Loud LOUD explosion.

As a precaution, the T shut Green Line service as firefighters looked around on the street and in the station for the source of the boom, but they found nothing, an inbound Green Line driver reported the tunnel between Copley and Arlington was fine and service started up about 10 minutes later.

Brian D'Amico tweets police speculate a tour bus may have had an engine backfire or two.

The Boston Business Journal reports the Department of Transportation's Finance Committee this week approved a plan under which New Balance will build a new Worcester Line station near its impending new Brighton complex. The stop will be called Boston Landing.

Transit Police report a surveillance camera captured a man in the act of stealing a worker's T-Mobile Galaxy Note 2 phone out of a North Station information booth around 12:20 p.m. last Thursday.

They've posted a series of the photos in the hopes of tracking down the man, whom they describe as white, about 35, 5'5" to 5'7" with a heavy build. He was wearing a blue, long-sleeved shirt with a black and blue stripped tie and black pants and had a black backpack.

This guy tells WBZ he was only expressing his displeasure at the way the driver was driving.

Transit Police report arresting a Saugus man after he started choking a bus driver for no good reason they could tell and another passenger had to pull him off.

Police say Franco Contino rode a 426 bus from Haymarket in Boston to Saugus without incident last Wednesday afternoon.

But when the bus stopped on Lincoln Avenue to let passengers off, Contino erupted in fury and began cursing out the driver, Transit Police say:

Case in point:

Haverhill 213 10:30 AM OB experiencing 30-45 min delays due to residual delay 5/13/2013 11:46 AM

Are the people who write these things really that dumb? Oh wait, I guess that's a rhetorical question.

Transit Police say a Quincy woman learned Saturday it's also against the law to assault people selling food inside MBTA stations

Transit Police report Tina Drouin, 49, of Quincy, grew upset around 2 p.m. when she ordered a steak and cheese sub at the Nathan's Famous stand in the Quincy Center Red Line stop, because the worker allegedly loaded up her steak and cheese sub with too much "shit," specifically, too many pickles.

Police say that when the worker refused to refund Drouin's money, Drouin punched the worker in the face, then "pushed two large very heavy jars filled with pickles and pickle juice into the sub maker knocking her to the floor and shattering the jars."

Drouin, police say, then ran out of the station. But the worker decided she wasn't going to put up with Drouin's alleged shit and so got up and ran after her. Police say the worker caught up with Drouin on Hancock Street near City Hall and held her until Transit and Quincy police arrived. Police had to summon an ambulance to transport Drouin to a local hospital after she complained of neck pain.

Innocent, etc.

Arturo Gossage captured South Station in its Mother's Day finest.

Copyright Arturo Gossage. Posted in the Universal Hub pool on Flickr.

A man wound up on the tracks at Airport station around 8:30 p.m. on Thursday. The train operator managed to stop the train before hitting him. An MBTA spokesman declined to say how the man ended up on the tracks but said he was not seriously hurt (click to see a photo from the scene, forwarded by Heath - it's not gory, but could be disturbing).

Around 1 p.m. today, Jenn Martinelli reports:

A guy just fell on the tracks at Maverick Station right before the train arrived. 3 people jumped right down to help. The train was almost at the station and they just jumped right down and got him.

A somewhat stationary yet still roving UHub photographer noticed T workers dealing with a couple of Red Line cars that slipped off the rails in the Cabot yard around lunchtime:

All these T workers have just been standing around for the past 90 minutes while one guy saws away on something between the 2 cars. Do they think they're going to pick it up?

A T spokesman said the workers know what they're doing and figured out how to get the cars back on the tracks. He added that because the two cars were in the yard, they were not carrying any passengers and did not delay any service.

As I was riding by Oak Grove (on the commuter rail) on my way home earlier, I noted a change. One side of the platform is now closed off, complete with fake walls to block whatever's going on from view of the passengers.

Anybody have an idea as to what they are doing, and why they need to reduce the station capacity by fifty percent (both passengers and trains)to do it?

The T this week launches a PSA campaign aimed at getting bus riders to leave bus drivers alone. You wouldn't think people would need to be reminded that spitting at drivers is not OK, but recent evidence suggests there are quite a few people out there who think nothing of punching drivers, spitting at them and trying to pull drivers off buses for beatings.

In addition to the bus ads, loudspeakers across the T system will be carrying a message from Transit Police Chief Paul MacMillan:

Assaulting an MBTA employee is against the law. Think twice before putting your hands on T staff. We will find you, arrest you and prosecute you.

The T adds it is seeking legislation to increase the penalties for people found guilty of attacking T employees.

The T is adding QR codes to its police cruisers so that people with iPhones or Android devices can QR themselves links to download the SeeSay app for reporting T trouble.

Wire problems mean bustitution between Riverside and Kenmore.

Get the handle fixed now, they implore.

It was only a couple of years ago that MIT fixed up the musical installation.

Via Boston Reddit.