Stuck train in Quincy blamed for slow trains between downtown and Alewife
By adamg - Tue, 06/02/2009 - 6:59pm.
Al Stevens tweets it took him 45 minutes to get from Park Street to Alewife.
An e-mail correspondent writes from his smartphone, around 8 p.m.:
I've been stuck on an outbound Red Line train for about 15 mins and listening to a series of mumbled announcements that "this train is being held till released by central control due to a disabled train at Quincy Adams."
I should note that I'm at Downtown Crossing and QA is eight stops in the opposite direction.
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Ski lift effect
Alewife can only hold two trains at a time so I guess it's possible that the trains were so backed up that the congestion looped around to the other direction.
Alewife has storage space
The tracks at Alewife actually continue beyond the station, making a right turn and ending a few yards into Arlington. So there should be room for one or two more trains there if needed.
But then they'd have to release everyone into Alewife?
And you know the usual rule at the T (power outages excepted): once we have you, we are darn well NOT letting go of you until we have delivered you to your destination. Eventually.
Sounds to me like
"The Patented Pesaturo Problem Advisory System" (i.e. the big dart board with pre-printed excuses hanging in the T's PR office)strikes again.