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Fabled beast spotted, ridden on Green Line
By adamg on Wed, 02/29/2012 - 9:48am
UPDATE: MBTA spokesman Joe Pesaturo says there were no four-car trains in operation on the Green Line this morning; only two- and three-car ones.
Laura Longoria reports she rode on a four-car Green Line train today:
I got on it at Park St and rode it 2 stops to Arlington, it was a Riverside train.
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Comments
Kenmore to Park
I've seen the 4-car train they use after Red Sox games, it shuttles between Kenmore and Park St. Perhaps this is the same idea.
My guess is she was actually
My guess is she was actually on just a 3-car train, because the 4-car Red Sox extra they ran from Kenmore to Park St ran express, it could not stop at Arlington or Boylston because not all doors on all four cars would fit on the open areas of the platforms.
Didn't they just renovate Arlington?
Shame they didn't extend it then.
The platform at Arlington can, and always has
been able to, board four cars at the same time. There's even automatic signal indications ("double yellow" signal) that allow for this as well.
The problem at most of the stations is neither platform length or capacity (OK - the length is an issue at Boylston, which can only handle three cars instead of four), but rather an outdated "safety" rule that prohibits the loading of more than one train at the same time (Park Street westbound is the only platform in the system where this rule is not in effect).
Park St EB?
What about Park Street Eastbound? I see sets of 2 trains discharging at a time every day during rush hour on the Lechmere-side platform. Most trains wait for the other train to leave, but occasionally one of the drivers will pull up and let people on/off while the first train is still in the station (but only if the first train has stopped far enough forward to allow all 4 cars to fit on the platform).
It is indeed feasible, but I personally haven't seen it
done in years (and I ride the Green Line daily). More often than not, the second train will pull in just far enough so most , but not all doors, are on the platform - but they won't open any of the doors until the front train has left and they move forward.
Government Center trains will
Government Center trains will double-berth at Park St. eastbound behind another train, but Lechmere and North Station trains always pull up all the way up and will not unload behind a second train.
Again, it's feasible but actually been
very rare in my experience. Depending on the time of day, I'll often 'leapfrog' to Government Center instead of waiting for a North Station or Lechmere car.
The eastbound Government Center cars I've been on in these cases generally do not "double berth" at Park Street, even if following another Government Center car instead of a North Station or Lechmere one.
When Arlington was rebuilt,
When Arlington was rebuilt, the change in platform height and elevator installation reduced the amount of usable platform so 1 door on a 4-car train will not clear. The space under the staircases at the north end is no longer usable and a four-car train inbound would have to pull that far up for all doors to be on the platform.
Ok, thanks for the clarification.
I've been through Arlington on trains several times since it was rebuilt, but haven't actually been on the station platform itself.
Does that mean there were four drivers on board?
The MBTA wastes so much money on trolleys staffed by 2-4 people.
Fare collection is also a joke--let people pay on the platforms and use all doors to board/alight. A recent Sunday trip on the E inbound was delayed by almost 5 full minutes at the Museum while people tried to use the onboard fareboxes. (I know what you're thinking: at least they bothered to collect fares.)
BTW, this is what happens when you refuse to look to other cities for best practices. It's a cultural problem in Massachusetts. See also the complete lack of Business Improvement Districts in Greater Boston, the Downtown Crossing Hole, and the double-fail of Worcester's downtown and mall.
/rant
There actually is a Downtown Crossing BID
Whether it's effective or not is another question (although it's fairly new), but it's what pays for those "ambassadors" who make sure the barriers stay up on Winter Street at Tremont and do other essential tasks.
Museum has validator machines
Museum has validator machines on the platforms. Why wouldn't they open all the doors?
You say this is as if the validation machines actually work.
LOL!! You say this is as if the validation machines actually work. None of them have worked or even been used since they were installed. Most of the screens have gone black now, but there are a few still turned on with a nice big Windows Error message.
I never knew there was a
I never knew there was a Fabled Beast! I am new to the city and will have to keep my eyes open for this 4 car train on the Green line :) -Mea www.hertrainstories.blogspot.com