I already bid farewell so it will be a short ride:
"Operator bids for rail contract despite ridership fall; Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad Co. vies for new contract, cites outside forces in drop-off" by Martine Powers | Globe Staff, October 22, 2013
Massachusetts’ commuter rail system, once plagued by delays and widespread consumer dissatisfaction, has succeeded in improving its service, but is wrestling with another persistent problem: a decline in ridership.
Oh, I'm sorry, I thought that said readership.
Bucking national trends, fewer people ride the commuter rail now than 10 years ago....
After all the articles I have read all these years saying ridership was up, up, up?!!?
Arrrrgggghh!!!!!!!!
According to ridership records maintained by the American Public Transportation Association, between spring 2003 and the same period in 2013, average weekday ridership for the Massachusetts commuter rail fell by 12.5 percent — even though the populations of counties served grew between 2000 and 2010....
I'm getting off now. You can stay for the ride if you like.
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Related: Patrick gives details on how transport funds may be spent
Also related:
"US starts inquiry on transit deaths; 2 workers hit by Bay Area train" by Lisa Leff | Associated Press, October 21, 2013
OAKLAND, Calif. — Federal accident investigators were in the San Francisco Bay Area on Sunday to examine the deaths of two transit workers who were struck by an out-of-service commuter train performing routine maintenance, said National Transportation Safety Board spokesman Eric Weiss.
Saturday’s accident on Bay Area Rapid Transit tracks in the East Bay city of Walnut Creek took place against the backdrop of a contentious and disruptive labor strike....
Oooh, bad labor!
The four-car BART train with several people aboard was being run in automatic mode under computer control at the time of the accident, Assistant General Manager Paul Oversier said.
And those computer systems are supposed to be taking over transit for safety's sake?
The system has been shut down since Friday because of a work stoppage by the system’s two largest unions.
The train was returning from a yard where workers cleaned graffiti from unused cars when it slammed into the two workers — one a BART employee and the other a contractor — who were inspecting an above-ground stretch of track between stations, Oversier said....
With no indication that the striking BART workers would be back on the job Monday, the region was preparing for another day of gridlock on freeways and bridges clogged with commuters who would ordinarily be traveling by train....
Of course, it wasn't that much of a problem back then.
After the death in May of a train foreman who was killed by a passenger train in West Haven, Conn., the transportation safety board has been promoting improved safety measures for track maintenance crews nationwide.
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Related: Brown Breaks BART Strike
And he did it again.
Also see:
San Francisco transit talks up to wire
Calif. transit strike averted for now
Deal reached to end Calif. transit strike
Maybe next time you can take a bullet train:
"Bullet train runs into opposition in California" Associated Press, October 21, 2013
FRESNO, Calif. — Trucks loaded with tomatoes, milk, and almonds clog the two main highways that bisect California’s farm heartland, carrying goods to millions along the Pacific Coast and beyond.
This dusty stretch of land is the starting point for one of the most expensive US public infrastructure projects: a $68 billion high-speed rail system that would span the state, linking the people of America’s salad bowl to more jobs, opportunity, and buyers.
Five years ago, California voters overwhelmingly approved the idea of bringing a bullet train to the most populous US state. It would be America’s first high-speed rail system. Engineering work has finally begun on the first 30-mile segment of track in Fresno, a city of a half-million people with soaring unemployment. Rail is meant to help Fresno, with construction jobs now and improved access to economic opportunity once the project is finished. But the region that could benefit most from the project is also where opposition to it has grown most fierce. ‘‘I just wish it would go away, this high-speed rail. I just wish it would go away,’’ says Gary Lanfranco, whose restaurant is slated to be demolished to make way for rerouted traffic.
Such sentiments can be heard throughout the Central Valley. Growers complain of misplaced priorities, and residents wonder if their tax money is being squandered.
That is what rules AmeriKa these days no matter which state you live. It's ba$ically rendered this blog pointle$$. All the loot has been stolen by the wealthy elite and political cla$$. Even when government is "doing good" it is not for those reasons, and always is for the benfit of certain other intere$ts.
I'm sorry, liberals and Democrats, but it is the truth. I live in a state dominated and ruled by them and the $tench of corruption is acute.
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Also see: Borrowing For the Bullet Train
Couldn't you hear the clang of the bell?
Related: Parents urged to prepare for possible bus strike
Also see: Back on the Boston Globe School Bus
Globe got off it real quick.
