Imagine getting these trains under the Christmas tree

If the cars don't break down, the seats are comfortable, and there's heat and AC, who cares how old they are? They managed to start up a new commuter rail service (which isn't so easy in this country) and saved some money by getting used equipment. I say great!

The three Type 7's being scrapped aren't complete. They're wrecked-beyond-repair victims left out of the recently completed midlife overhaul program which were raided for parts to help feed the rebuilt units. They were even able to squeeze a couple wholly bonus rebuilt cars out of the program as a result from other wrecks spliced together with spare parts back into working cars, so these wrecks ended up paying dividends. They're now thoroughly stripped of anything usable, so wouldn't even qualify for a static museum display at Seashore. Several more wrecks got scrapped about 18 months ago after similarly serving as parts donors, so these 3 final scrappings can sort of be considered the 'official' ceremonial end of the rebuild program as it was always planned this way.

The Boeing parts supply chain is G-O-N-E, so the 3 work cars have been all been sitting around for close to 4 years now with shot propulsion that can't be repaired. The 4th Boeing that's in this scrap contract was an extra unit stripped for parts to keep the 3 work cars running. Like the Type 7's being scrapped it's been so thoroughly harvested there's nothing useful left in it.

Not sure Seashore would have any use for the work cars. Boeing parts are so scarce even the one they have barely runs, and is probably fated to being a static display once they can no longer coax it into running. Unlike some of the simpler century-old Boston subway stuff they have still in fully-operational state and also unlike the Type 7's they'll ultimately get which have generic enough guts that they'll be able to take our great-grandkids for rides at Seashore...the Boeings are (and always have been) real unicorns parts-wise. They might be able to take a second unit from the work cars or stash enough parts from these scrappings to refresh their existing unit, but it only ends up delaying by a couple years the inevitable when something ends up breaking that they can't repair from any known parts supply.

3417 was the re-railer car, equipped with tools for pulling a derailed train back onto the tracks. When still operational it used to live on the pocket track in the tunnel halfway between Boylston and Arlington so it could be dispatched quickly to the scene of a derailment.

Its propulsion died a few years ago, so the only way it could do its re-railing job is if a Type 7 dead-towed it out of Reservoir and cumbersomely set it up. Then eventually it became too electrically unreliable to even do that much, so they had to mothball it in the dead line with the others.