Paging those who ride forever 'neath the streets of Boston
By adamg - 10/7/09 - 11:58 am
A group called TransitWorks is working with the MBTA to collect data on rider experiences on the T in November. Volunteers will fill out an online questionnaire on their rides each day and "detail everything from type of service used to the comfort and crowding on the vehicle." Become a Charlie.
Via.
Comments
best ride ever
I did this a couple of years ago, and it was fun although there was a bit of work involved. The two weeks also coincided with the most trouble-free, quick days of commuting I'd had in a long time.
ha!
I was about to say the same thing: on my way to the TransitWorks orientation, my Green Line train took 15-20 minutes just to get from Park Street to Gov't Center (!) so I was ready to plunge into this program.
Then the next two weeks everything was fine on my commute. Fooey.
But you do get to grade other things like lightning, clarity of announcements, cleanliness, and safety.
I signed up, but didn't know
I signed up, but didn't know about any kind of orientation I would have to physically go to. Guess I will still do it.
Whit
Orientation
Yes, they usually have a series of large-group sessions to go over the diary format and show you how to do it, take questions, etc.
Same here, mostly
I'll chime in to say that I've done this twice before, with the handwritten diaries, and I, too, had some shockingly good commutes. The T isn't supposed to know when a diary project is running, but I guess it's possible they could find out. However, they ovbiously can't know which routes diary-keepers are using!
On the other hand, I also had a few spectacularly bad commutes to record on the most recent diary session (2007) so it wasn't all a waste.
I strongly encourage anyone interested to get in touch with the TransitWorks folks and do a diary - I just signed up again and the response I got back was that they were delighted to have me again and that I should encourage everyone I know to volunteer. They want as many participants as possible.