A scathing new report from transportation watchdog TransitMatters finds the state’s commuter rail system is in want of full-scale overhaul if Massachusetts hopes to satisfy self-imposed Net Zero carbon targets by 2050.
The report, titled “Turning Vision into Reality: the Moment for Regional Rail is Now,” signifies the state is at a transit crossroads, confronted with the selection of sustaining an outdated and ailing diesel fleet, or investing within the sort of regional transportation that really works for residents.
“The MBTA’s commuter rail system is failing the people it should serve,” the report reads, partially. “Riders from Gateway Cities like Haverhill and Fitchburg must pay high fares for trains that come hourly or worse.”
“Environmental justice communities like Dorchester and Chelsea are exposed to dangerous black carbon emissions from diesel locomotives and are forced to contend with long bus trips because of commuter rail’s expense, low frequency, and unreliability. White collar workers with flexible schedules drive instead thanks to commuter rail’s infrequent schedules and poor reliability, adding to the region’s traffic congestion while frustrating emissions reductions targets,” the report says.
According to the report, issues with the commuter rail service come following a long time of heavy funding and regardless of elevated authorities backed subsidies compared with the MBTA’s speedy transit system.
Ridership ranges haven’t returned to pre-pandemic ranges, hovering round 30% in need of these numbers, “speaking to a need to move beyond Commuter Rail’s peak-oriented model to boost ridership and avoid a negative feedback loop imposed by possible service cuts.”
TransitMatters is proposing the Commuter Rail, below a Regional Rail mannequin, needs to be totally electrified, its platforms raised and made accessible, stations standardized to enhance development velocity, and repair elevated by as much as 300%, which implies trains arriving at stations so far as Haverhill each half-hour, all day day by day.
“As the last three years have proven, increased remote work has not measurably reduced traffic congestion or vehicle miles traveled. We continue to believe that (former) Governor Baker’s Commission on the Future of Transportation had it right when it declared that Massachusetts needs to move more people in fewer vehicles,” they wrote.
Electrifying all the system and placing the corresponding electrical trains on the tracks might price upwards of $8 billion, based on Jarred Johnson, govt director of TransitMatters. Still, the price of not doing so shall be greater, based on the report.
“EMUs trains are roughly 10 times as reliable as diesel locomotives, requiring less maintenance; their lifecycle costs, including acquisition and maintenance, are half the cost of diesels,” the report states. “Because operating costs are largely driven by the peak; increases in off-peak service incur little additional cost. High all-day frequency would mean the same number of conductors and engineers working the trains could make more trips per shift, reducing the cost per trip.”
The report additionally requires fare changes. Under the present mannequin, a rider boarding a prepare on the furthest commuter rail zone pays as a lot as $26.80 for a spherical journey journey to and from Boston; and that’s earlier than paying for parking or a subway switch, which might push the value nearer to $40 for a single day’s commute.
Under the proposed plan there would solely be 4 commuter rail zones, as a substitute of the present 10, and when coupled with a low-income low cost, a journey from the furthest zone might price as little as $7.20 spherical journey.
“In the short term, a move to cheaper fares represents a commitment to mode shift and transit accessibility for all income levels – a regional and social equity win. In the long term, efficiencies from electrification and higher ridership mean an increase in ticket revenue,” the report reads.
Herald reporter Gayla Cawley contributed.
Source: www.bostonherald.com”