MBTA Hosting Huge Recycling Event at the Watertown Bus Yard

Bring your electronics, appliances, clothes, metal and more to the event on May 11.

The MBTA will host a recycling event where local residents can bring a wide variety of items, including electronics, metal, clothes and much more. The event will be at the Watertown Bus Yard, at Galen and Water streets in Watertown (just over the Newton line), on Saturday, May 11 from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m. Residents of all towns are welcome, according to an information poster from the Massachusetts Department of Transportation. Items taken at the event will not end up in landfill, according to the MassDOT. Televisions cost 35 cents per pound and everything else will be accepted for free, according to the announcement. Here are items that will be accepted: Electronics: computers, monitors, VCRs, cell phones, keyboards, printers, copiers, faxes…

• Photos (1)

MBTA Launches ‘Don’t Touch The Driver’ Campaign

There have been 28 reported assaults on MBTA employees during the first four months of 2013.

  The MBTA wants the public to know that if they attack a driver who is working, there will be serious consequences. The MBTA’s new “Don’t Touch The Driver” public relations campaign features posters on the ceilings and backs of chairs inside buses depicting hands in handcuffs and messages warning that an attacker will be sought after, arrested and prosecuted. “Violence toward a bus driver is against the law,” one poster says. “We will prosecute.” The campaign, which includes a new recorded message issued by MBTA General Manager Beverly Scott at T stations, follows the most recent attack, which took place in Dorchester where a group of teenagers flagged down a bus and then proceeded to attack the driver. There have been 28 reported …

•  1 Comment
• Photos (2)

Adam Maleson

8:34 pm on Tuesday, May 7, 2013

It's very odd that they should make announcements telling passengers that they should think twice about committing assault. I would prefer they told people not to think once about committing assault. But then, I ain't got no PhD like Dr. Scott. She sure do know lots of Big Words! Words like egregious and mitigating and feasibility. She got smarts, so she must know what she's doing. Right now I'm …   more ›

Shuttle Buses Replacing Green D Line in Newton

The line is being diverted due to a wire problem.

The MBTA is diverting Green D Line service in Newton this evening due to a wire problem.  Shuttle buses are replacing trains between Riverside and Reservoir, according to MBTA alerts. This includes all D Line stops in Newton (Riverside, Woodland, Waban, Eliot, Newton Highlands, Newton Centre and Chestnut Hill). Customers are encouraged to use C Line service between Kenmore and Reservoir, or use alternate transportation. Newton Patch  Facebook | Twitter | Email Updates | Instagram

• Photos (1)

South Station Gets Free WiFi

Google partnered with the MBTA to deliver free wireless internet to the Boston area’s largest train station.

The MBTA is starting to get wired. As of Thurs., May 2, South Station has free wireless internet, according to a joint press release from Google, Redevelopment Ventures Corp. and the MBTA. Google invested in the endeavor and Redevlopment Ventures Corp. is responsible for WiFi development, the press release says. “Anything that improves our customers’ transit experience is a good thing,” MBTA General Manager Beverly Scott said in the statement. “By coupling this new initiative with the WiFi service provided on Commuter Rail trains, the MBTA is keeping its customers connected from the moment they enter South Station to the time they exit trains.” The Framingham/Worcester commuter rail line -- which passes through Auburndale, West Newton and …

• Photos (1)

Framingham/Worcester Express Trains Launch Today

The MBCR also announced two other minor service changes on the Framingham/Worcester commuter rail line.

The Massachusetts Bay Commuter Rail (MBCR) is launching an express train connecting Worcester and Boston today, according to New England Cable News. There will be two new express trains on the Framingham/Worcester Line, one inbound and one outbound.  The inbound express train (P582) will leave Worcester at 6:20 a.m. and stop just once, in Framingham at 7 a.m., before arriving at South Station just after 7:45 a.m., according to a press release issued by MBCR.  The outbound express train (P583) will depart South Station at 5:35 p.m. and make stops in Back Bay (5:41 p.m.) and Framingham (6:15 p.m.) before arriving in Worcester at 6:43 p.m., the press release said. This new service will cut approximately 20 minutes from the usual trip, "T" …

• Photos (1)

UPDATE: MBTA Service Resumes, Some Delays Expected Following Marathon Explosion

ormal Green, Orange and Red line service is resuming with significant residual delays.

Updated 8:36 p.m.:  Normal Green Line, Orange Line, and Red Line service has resumed. Copley Station remains closed and will be closed tomorrow, April 16, according to the MBTA's website. 5:53 p.m.: Regular T services has resumed on the MBTA's Green, Orange and Red lines as of 5:45 p.m., following at least two explosions at the finish line of the 2013 Boston Marathon. Park Street and Downtown Crossing stations have reopened. MBTA T service in downtown Boston was suspended on several lines this afternoon as emergency crews responded to the scene, according to MBTA.com. The MBTA’s Green Line service between Kenmore and Park Street stations were shut down by around 3:30 p.m., although Green Line service will continued to run between Lechmere …

• Photos (1)

Without Funding Solution, T Fare Hikes Likely

The submitted budget closes the 2014 gap, but without more funding riders could pay.

Though the submitted MBTA budget for the next fiscal year has been approved, it assumes additional funding will close the $118 million gap. The MBTA’s fiscal year 2014 $1.86 billion budget was approved at a meeting of the Massachusetts Department of Transportation Board of Directors Wednesday. The budget relies on either Gov. Deval Patrick’s “The Way Forward” transportation plan, which would pump $1 billion in revenues into the system by way of fare increases, fees and tax hikes, or another plan from either the House of Representatives, the Senate or both. Facing growing financial and infrastructure challenges, the MBTA instituted fare hikes and some service cuts last summer. Several meetings were held on the fare hikes, including a packed…

• Photos (1)

Boston Marathon 2013

MAP: Newton Road Closures and MBTA Changes for 2013 Boston Marathon

Check here for all the info you need to get around the city on Marathon Monday.

Marathon Monday is almost here, and that means serious traffic and road closures for Newton.  We've included a list below of Newton road closures for Marathon Monday, April 15, as listed on the city's website. There is also a list of MBTA service changes that will be put in place. In addition to the marathon road closures below, there is also a list of road closures for the Newton Heartbreak Hill Road Race on Sunday, April 14. Make sure to stay tuned to Newton Patch all day Marathon Monday, April 15 for live, local coverage of the race! The following traffic changes and road closures will be put in place for Newton's Annual Heartbreak Hill Road Race on Sun., April 14: Information provided by the Newton city website. Information courtesy of…

• Photos (2)

Mass. Tax Plans: Too Much, Too Soon? Or Too Little, Too Slow?

Should the state forge ahead with Gov. Deval Patrick's bold plan to invest now? Or should it follow the Legislature leadership's proposal to address the bottom line before embarking on bigger initiatives?

Massachusetts legislators this week answered Gov. Deval Patrick's ambitious plan to raise $1.9 billion for transportation and education with a $500 million plan of their own, which says the governor is asking for too much, too soon as the Bay State shakes off the effects of the Great Recession. Who's right? Should the state forge ahead in a bold plan to invest now? Or should it cautiously address the bottom line before embarking on bigger initiatives? While Patrick's plan includes funding for both the state transportation system and increased education funding from preschool through college, House and Senate lawmakers eschew new revenue for education, focusing solely on closing the transportation budget gap over the next five years. The …

• Photos (1)

More Than 1,200 T Riders Cited for Fare Evasion This Year

The number of MBTA fare evaders caught this year is slightly less than those caught over the same period last year.

If you've ever thought about jumping a turnstile to catch the T, it’s likely you’ll get hit with a fine for evading the fare. MBTA police have issued 1,231 evasion citations system wide so far in 2013, as of March 25, according to MBTA detective Richard Sullivan. Over the same period last year, the MBTA issued 1,267 citations. The fine for a first-time fare evader is $50, according to Sullivan; future offenses could be as high as $500, according to the law. Operation Fare Game, the MBTA’s initiative to enforce fare laws on the T, from time to time leads to arrests. Christian Fitzgerald, 23, of Roxbury was arrested March 22 after he attempted to dodge a fare at Downtown Crossing by entering through the exit-only gate, according to a transit…

• Photos (1)