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Alternative_Nail1632 t1_iye0vyd wrote

Reply to comment by eladts in Finally connecting Red and Blue lines by MDeehan

North South Rail link solves zero problems. This would make a difference

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Ksevio t1_iyes8kt wrote

It solves lots of problems - reduces load of subway trains from people going between the north/south of the city (similar to red/blue connector but larger scale) and speeds up trains at North/South Stations (no need to reverse/switch tracks)

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Alternative_Nail1632 t1_iyev8lr wrote

I disagree. That assumes everyone is going to the place where the station is, which most people are not doing

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Ksevio t1_iyeyfs9 wrote

That's not an assumption here. The stations are not just destinations but connection points.

For example, someone could travel from Worcester to a job in Charlestown, they need to go something like:

Worcester -(CR)> South Station -(Red)> Downtown Crossing -(Orange)> Community College

With the N/S link they could do:

Worcester -(CR)> North Station -(Orange)> Community College

Cuts out a connection and a significant amount of slower subway travel.

It also allows people to commute between suburbs. Someone travelling from Dorchester to Woburn has to do:

Four Corners -> South Station -> Downtown Crossing -> North Station -> Anderson

With the link it's just:

Four Corners -> Anderson

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Master_Dogs t1_iyf7nfd wrote

> Cuts out a connection and a significant amount of slower subway travel. > >

Transfers take a lot of time too. On the weekends I've seen 20 minutes between Red and Green Line trains. One less transfer could easily save you that much time. Possibly more, if a transfer causes you to miss an hourly bus for example it might cost you an hour or so.

The other cool thing is we could run trains between say Worcester and Lowell, or Lynn and Framingham, or any number of connections that currently are basically "I need to drive or spend 3 hours on a train/subway/train" with the hourly commuter rail trains and occasionally 20 minute headways on the subway being huge "fuck the T, I'll drive" points.

And if we can run trains between North and South station we could probably make due with less trains. Or run trains at higher frequencies. That gives us some good options. Maybe we take a few trains from a lesser used line and put them on those Worcester -> Lowell/Lynn routes I mentioned.

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Master_Dogs t1_iyf8tgl wrote

Solves multiple problems:

  • Eliminates the need to turn trains around at North and South station. This is a major bottleneck and reduces the amount of trains we can run through those stations, limiting our headways.
  • Allows us to run trains between North and South shore stations. Worcester to Lowell, Lynn to Fall River, Fitchburg to the Cape, you name it it's possible if we have the North/South Rail Link and enough trains.
  • Allows us to share trains between the North and South shore lines easily too. Currently our main option is the slow overnight transfer of equipment via the Grand Junction Freight railroad in Cambridge. We could easily handle a broken train by sending a spare from the south shore up to the north shore or vice versa.
  • Gives us a new connection between North and South Station. This on itself could allow for redundancy in our downtown transit system which is helpful if subway lines need to be repaired.
  • All of these things may eliminate the need for some passengers to transfer to the subway at all too. That allows for more capacity in our transit system and faster rides. That Lowell to Worcester route might take 3+ hours today since you need to ride 2 Commuter Rail trains and the subway. Commuter Rail trains have hour long headways at times and the subway may take 15-20 minutes at times between trains. Combine all of this and you may need to catch a 9am train from Lowell to catch a noon train to Worcester out of South Station to get to your destination several hours after someone who drives gets there. Why can't Lowell to Worcester take an hour or two via ONE train?
  • And if we get more people onto a train of some sort, we get people out of cars and that frees up highway, roadways and parking for people who need or absolutely want a car. Some of these improvements could lead to a few thousand to maybe tens of thousands of new train riders. Maybe that's a few thousand cars off the roads.
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