MBTA: Full service return to take ‘at least’ 30 days
Battered by snow and cold-related service problems, the MBTA will probably take a full month after the last snow to return to normal service, MBTA General Manager Beverly Scott told reporters Monday night.
"In order to be able to say we're back to normalcy that's going to take probably at least about 30 days," Scott said on a conference call. Scott said full service would likely resume 30 days "from the time that we finish with the last snow." She distinguished the last snow from a "minor dusting."
Since late January, Boston has received about seven feet of snow, Boston Mayor Martin Walsh said. Surrounding communities have also been slammed with snow. MBTA transit service, especially rail service, has been running well below usual levels following four major snowstorms.
"I hope it's sooner than that, but I'm just trying to be very, very honest," Scott said. She blamed the lengthy projected run-up to a return to full service on "the fact of the degradation that's taken place."
Tuesday morning, the T provided "limited" rail and bus service Tuesday and "reduced" commuter rail trips through its private-sector system operator, Keolis.
The T announced just before 8 a.m. that it was suspending service on its Greenbush line that serves the South Shore. Residents along that rail corridor also don't have access to another option for travel into Boston as T boat service out of Hingham has been shut down due to ice in the harbor.
At Quincy Center commuter rail station, people surged toward the train as it rolled in. One commuter rail employee yelled, "Back up!" The crowd surged again toward the doors. The train filled up, and as it pulled away and picked up speed, passengers struggled to close the doors.
DeLeo: People are ‘right’ to be angry
In a televised interview on CBS-Boston, Speaker Robert DeLeo on Friday night asked why the MBTA was not prepared for the recent snow. The Winthrop Democrat said "people are angry about the T. You know what, and they're right."
"What happened? We live in a northeast state, and I appreciate the snow, but what happened? Why weren't we prepared for cold and snow?" DeLeo said. He added, "Switches are going to freeze, OK. Is there a way to counteract that? I bet that there is and if so, why weren't we prepared?"
In addition to freezing switches, the cold and snow has covered the third rail power supply for vehicles and damaged their engines, transportation officials have said in recent weeks. Scott said the MBTA has had difficulty moving vehicles into yards.
After shutting down Sunday and partially re-opening Monday, the MBTA said it would run a "reduced core service" on Tuesday.
The number of available train and trolley cars was down on all lines Monday. Scott said she had between 120 and 108 of the usual complement of 168 Red Line cars; 56 of the usual 72 Blue cars; 56 to 46 of the usual 96 Orange Line cars; and 110 to 115 of the usual 146 Green Line cars.
In a press conference last Tuesday, Scott said the MBTA needs additional investment. DeLeo rejected the notion that the state had not provided enough funding for the T.
"I strongly reject that charge, and that's always the call of any types of problems with the T," DeLeo said, noting the Legislature passed two transportation bond bills investing in the MBTA during his six years as speaker.
DeLeo suggested the T needed "some other reforms or some changes in personnel."
Scott said the governor's office has assisted the agency, the Carmen's union has understood the need for protocols to be "relaxed and suspended," and she credited MBTA contractors with helping. She said the MBTA will "absolutely" seek federal disaster relief.
"We will in fact strategically and methodically take this system back line by line, vehicle by vehicle, station by station, area by area," Scott said. "That is going to take some time."
(FLASH POLL: In this week's Flash Poll, we ask: What's the first thing that should be done to fix the MBTA's problems? Click here to vote and comment.)
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