Commonwealth Conversations: Transportation

MBTA Orange Line Cell Phone Service

MBTA General Manager Richard Davey announced a customer convenience for Orange Line riders providing for the first time wireless telephone services along the entire Orange Line underground corridor.  Orange Line customers can use their wireless devices from end to end of the orange line, including 19 stations. 

A call can now be held continuously in all the underground sections of the Orange Line from Massachusetts Avenue through Back Bay, New England Medical, Chinatown, Downtown Crossing, State Street, Haymarket, North Station, and under the Charles River to Community College.   T-Mobile and AT&T will provide service at these locations.

In December 2007, the MBTA became one of the first subway systems in the country to provide underground wireless telephone service with wireless telephone service at four key downtown locations and in the connecting tunnels:  Downtown Crossing, Park Street, Government Center and State Street.  In May, a similar extension of service will encompass the Red Line tunnels and underground stations.  Calls will be able to be carried continuously from Charles / MGH through Park Street, Downtown Crossing, South Station, Broadway, and Andrews to JFK / UMass.  The underground sections of the Blue and Green Lines are currently in design.

Davey Promises Focus on Safety, Service

Richard A. Davey is the new MassDOT Rail and Transit Administrator and MBTA General Manager.  Governor Deval Patrick and MassDOT Secretary and CEO Jeffrey Mullan this week appointed Davey to the MassDOT Rail and Transit Administrator post, followed by his appointment by the MassDOT Board to the MBTA GM position.

Davey promises to focus on five top priorities: safety, customer service, an inclusive employee work environment, fiscal responsibility, and an innovative approach to delivering transit services.  Watch Davey's message, from one of the T stops he frequents regularly on his way to work.

Read the Globe and WBUR stories. 

Governor's First Hand Look: MBTA Control Center

Governor Patrick today toured the MBTA Operations Control Center with MassDOT Secretary & CEO Jeff Mullan and newly-appointed MassDOT Rail and Transit Administrator Richard Davey.  The Governor has recommended that Davey as part of his duties be appointed MBTA General Manager, pending MassDOT Board approval Thursday. 

The Operations Control Center is the hub for T operations and safety-related communications.
The state-of-the-art Control Center equipped with wall-sized electronic monitors closely tracks location and movement of hundreds of subway cars and trolleys on all four Rapid Transit Lines (Red, Orange, Blue, and Green) around the clock. 

Supervisors and dispatchers constantly communicate with train crews and other subway personnel throughout the 63-mile Rapid Transit System that sees more than 2,600 trips a day.

The OCC is also staffed by MBTA Transit Police, who monitor images from over 700 closed circuit television cameras in subway stations, platforms, and tunnels. 

MBTA staff briefed the Governor on Operations Control Center functions, and Administrator Davey later led a roundtable discussion with T riders.  Acting T GM William Mitchell joined the Governor and Secretary Mullan today.  Mitchell will return to his prior position as MBTA General Counsel.

Check Out Student Safe Driving Videos

Dozens of Commonwealth high school students and schools have answered the call on YouTube and posted their best safe driving videos.

MassDOT RMV Registrar Rachel Kaprielian last month joined Mary Elizabeth Heffernan, Secretary of the Executive Office of Public Safety and Security (EOPSS), to announce the 2010 "Dance. Don't Chance" statewide teen safe driving video contest to encourage a safe prom/graduation season.

Teens wrote, produced and submitted 60-second videos on safe driving and avoiding underage drinking.

Now, you can check out the more than 50 videos on YouTube here. The winning video will be announced next month. The winning school receives a Dream Prom package provided by contest sponsors.

Learn more about the contest. 

Davey Appointed MassDOT Rail & Transit Administrator

Governor Deval Patrick and MassDOT Secretary and CEO Jeffrey Mullan today appointed Richard A. Davey as MassDOT’s new Rail and Transit Administrator.

Davey will oversee the Commonwealth’s 15 Regional Transit Authorities and MassDOT’s freight and passenger rail program. As part of his Administrator responsibilities, Governor Patrick and Secretary Mullan will recommend that Davey also serve as MBTA General Manager, pending approval by the MassDOT Board at a special board meeting later this week.

Davey will succeed William Mitchell who served as Acting Rail and Transit Administrator and Acting MBTA GM.  Mitchell will return to his prior role as MBTA General Counsel and continue to play a major role in transportation reform implementation.

Davey is an experienced rail and transit manager who currently serves as General Manager at the Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad (MBCR), the company which operates and maintains MBTA commuter rail service, the 5th largest in the U.S.  At MBCR, Davey initiated programs that improved operations and safety, strengthened customer service and changed the culture within the company.
Due to Davey’s focus on operations, safety and customer service, customer complaints dropped 40% in 2009 from 2008.

MassDOT and the MBTA in the past six months have strengthened customer service for T riders by:

• Updating MBTA system maps and for the first time ever including key bus routes. 

• Extending discounted student Charlie Card hours during school days for youth travel to and from school.

• Investing federal stimulus ARRA funds in stations, tracks, bus service and station bicycle facilities.

• Launching the nationally recognized Open Data Initiative and Developers Page.

MassDOT Community Forum- Greenfield

MassDOT as part of its You Move Massachusetts Civic Engagement Initiative is holding a series of community forums on transportation across the Commonwealth.  The next forum is scheduled for:

Tuesday, March 23, 6:00- 7:30PM
Greenfield High School, One Lenox Avenue, Greenfield

The location is fully accessible to persons with disabilities.

The Greenfield forum will include a MassDOT overview, MassDOT Highway Division district 2 update, and an introduction to the Knowledge Corridor Rail Project.  The majority of the time will be made available for questions, answers, and comments. 

MassDOT is the result of the historic transportation reform bill signed into law by Governor Patrick in 2009.  Its four divisions include Highway, Rail & Transit, Aeronautics, and the Registry of Motor Vehicles.   These community forums will work to increase public awareness of the day to day operations and long range planning of MassDOT, and engage public input into MassDOT’s decision making processes.

Please visit our website to learn more about MassDOT.

Residents Discuss Mitchell River Bridge Project

Posted by Shoukry Elnahal, MassDOT Deputy Chief Engineer, Bridges & Tunnels

MassDOT held a well-attended public hearing on March 18 at the Chatham Community Center, in which our design team presented design plans for the replacement of the Mitchell River Bridge and listened to comments and answered questions from community members. The plans we presented included a number of features to help the bridge blend in with its surroundings including timber and stone cladding, and a timber railing and walkway. The design team also presented a number of traffic calming measures.
    A number of people at the meeting voiced their concerns about the type of structure presented, the width of the roadway and the proposed type of bridge deck, and how they may potentially encourage speeding. Many people asked that we continue to pursue the use of alternative bridge deck materials. I will follow through with the promise I made to the audience to re-evaluate the bridge width and deck materials.

If you weren’t able to attend the public hearing, you may view review the PowerPoint Slides here and handout here.

Green Line Service in Newton Restored Today

Just four days after flood waters completely washed out 60 feet of rail bed beneath Green Line tracks in Newton, the MBTA is ready to restore train service between Reservoir and Newton Highlands Stations.

Thanks to the remarkable efforts of crews working around the clock since Tuesday, Green Line service through Newton will resume at approximately 2:30 today, in time for the afternoon/evening commute home.

In just 3 ½ days, work crews:

Pumped all the water out of the swimming
pool-sized hole

Installed a 125 foot, 18 inch in diameter, concrete drainage pipe to prevent wash-outs in the future

Erected a retaining wall comprised of concrete blocks

Re-built the earthen rail bed beneath the tracks

Restored power to the overhead wires and tested the signal system and tracks

Visit MBTA on the web. 

MassDOT Flood Impact: Friday AM Update

MassDOT is providing the latest information as of Friday morning regarding state roadways affected by this week's storm.  See the latest list below. 

Wayland - Route 20 at Rte 27 remains closed at Wayland Center.  There remains local closures on Route 27 between Wayland and Sudbury.  For closures in the Sudbury area, check out the Sudbury website with interactive map.

Pepperell- Crews are currently clearing and sweeping debris from the Route 119 roadway, Pepperell. Opening is estimated at 1:00PM today.

Newbury - Route 1SB (@ Middle St./Hanover Rd.)- Right travel lane remains closed - crews on scene estimate completion by Noon.

Billerica - Route 3A @ Concord River between Treble Cove Rd. & Bridge St.- All Lanes Open 

Lincoln - Route 2 EB @ Lexington Road- All Lanes Open

Topsfield - Route 1 @ Ipswich River between Route 97 & Salem Road- All lanes open

Braintree - Route 37 at Hancock St.-Open

Middleton - Route 114 @ Ipswich River- All lanes open

Taunton - Flooding, on Rte 44 Westbound between, Rte 138 (Broadway/ Weir St/) and Rte 104 (S Main St) Rte 44 East and West closed, due to flooding, between Route 104 in Raynham and Longmeadow Road in Taunton.

This is a list of roads under state jurisdiction.  Other local roads may still be affected.  For closures in the Concord and Sudbury areas, check out the Sudbury website and Concord website.

MassDOT, Federal Partners Focus on Innovation

A top priority for MassDOT is delivering construction projects safely, quickly, and efficiently to reopen roads and bridges faster and reduce inconvenience for drivers and residents. That means exploring all new, innovative ways to streamline project delivery.

And this week, MassDOT joined the Federal Highway Administration, Construction Industries of Massachusetts and the American Council of Engineering Companies of Massachusetts for a productive “Innovative Contracting Workshop” with those priorities in mind.  

MassDOT, federal, and industry experts shared information on the feasibility, advantages and challenges of innovative project delivery and contracting and accelerated construction practices.

State experts heard constructive comments on current practices and developed follow-up plans to continue improving innovative project delivery. 

MassDOT is already delivering more projects than ever on time and on budget.  Under Governor Patrick's leadership, MassDOT has reduced the time for construction contract advertisement to construction start from 218 days in 2008 to 124 days in 2009.  Innovative construction techniques such as design-build and precast construction are delivering projects quicker and with less disruption to the community.  Visit MassDOT on the web to learn more.