Cape Flyer

I don't want to speculate too soon, but something tells me that this new service will be so popular they'll have trouble keeping up with ridership demand. In between gas prices and traffic in and around Boston and the Canal bridges (the latter of which can be encountered even with the fastest bus schedule) there is a lot of potential for ridership levels to more than exceed expectations.

I also feel the same way,NH2060, but as not to jinx anything (LOL!) my take on it would be that it must be done correctly, of corse, just like anything else. That's why I'm kind of concerned that other intermediate stops were omtted. (although, AFAIK, it will be stopping at Buzzards Bay.) Hopefuly the other stops will be added later if the initial service is successful.

I think it will be a huge success. I have an aunt in West Dennis to come and pick me up; can't wait
to take it down. And, being a T train, I'd think the price won't be too high (of course, won't be
as comfortable as an Amtrak!).

There is also a quote that commuter rail service from Hyannis-Boston will never happen.
I wonder if cape officals have to say that to appease rail opponents down there.
If the servcie does well then I imagine that local residents will lobby for a commuter service that will benefit
them as well as tourists. At that point, with a lot of local support, the rail and grade crossings can be upgraded for faster travel times and better safety.
And I wonder if state officals asked them to say it will never happen to keep the South Coast Rail folks from getting angry.

CR to the Cape WILL never happen. People don't want the Cape to be turned into Long Island, the distance/time from Hyannis is
too great, and there is too much upgrade needed to get fast enough CR speeds. I'd say the furthest it would ever get is Bourne,
and even that would take a lot of political maneuvering to get it above the (elephant in the room) Fall River New Bedford line.

NH2060 wrote:I don't want to speculate too soon, but something tells me that this new service will be so popular they'll have trouble keeping up with ridership demand. In between gas prices and traffic in and around Boston and the Canal bridges (the latter of which can be encountered even with the fastest bus schedule) there is a lot of potential for ridership levels to more than exceed expectations.

I sure hope you're right but it's better to lower expectations at first. The CC&H had a number of daily runs and still was not full, to the best of my recollection. Of course, this service also has the advantage of going right into South Station.

CapeFLYER can also do what, 70? 79? north of Middleboro. That's almost half the route that's upgraded to modern passenger speeds.

The EGE wrote:CapeFLYER can also do what, 70? 79? north of Middleboro. That's almost half the route that's upgraded to modern passenger speeds.

Max speed on the Middleboro Main is 70

The EGE wrote:CapeFLYER can also do what, 70? 79? north of Middleboro. That's almost half the route that's upgraded to modern passenger speeds.

And it's an extension of an all-stops local. One which already takes about an hour just to get to Middleborough/Lakeville.

As to some people not wanting CR on the Cape for fear it will be "another long island" they must mean they don't want the Cape to have a viable traffic-free alternative to the Cape, or a pollution free one for that matter. They must want people to sit in traffic and want more air pollution as well.

If they are afraid of more development, they must have been living in a closet for the past 35 years as they obviously didn't see the overdevelopment of the Cape or the ugly "McMansions" that have sprouted up all over the Cape. These folks must not realize that the Cape had train service in the past and the rail lines must have been for decoration only. LOL!

Weekend now ,maybe daily commuter rush hour specials later , makes more sense than the southcoast expansion.

boblothrope wrote:

The EGE wrote:It could be, though it may also be a matter of practicality. In MBTA territory, the train averages a stop every eight minutes, with fast starts and stops. At 30mph for 44 miles with 3 intermediate stops, the train will average a stop every 25 minutes, which is much more amenable to the stand-up nature of food service.

Are you saying that the starting and stopping would make a bar car uncomfortable? Plenty of commuter trains have had bar cars, and a few still do (for now, until Metro North retires the remaining ones).

If I were taking this train, I'd want food and a drink right after boarding. I wouldn't want to wait more than an hour.

Does anybody know MBTA policy regarding BYOB? I've ridden on trains in L.A. that are packed with people drinking from the moment it leaves Union Station, but no bar cars, it's all passenger sourced. Never seen anything like that on MBTA trains, though.

It's illegal to drink alcohol on the Commuter Rail. The old public schedules used to say Mass State Law prohibits the possession of alcohol. But that is no longer in the schedule and I cannot find anywhere where it says you cannot possess it in our rules.

New document with fares and partial schedules.

The fare is $20 one-way or $35 round trip.

The trip time is 2:38 outbound and 2:15 inbound on Fridays, and 2:18 outbound and 2:15 inbound on weekends.

The BOS - MBO segment is 0:58 outbound on Fridays (37mph average) and 0:48 on weekends (45mph), with the inbound runs at 0:45 (48mph).

The MBO-BZB segment is 0:40 outbound on Fridays (27mph) and 0:30 other times (36mph).

The BYB-HYN segment is 1:00 at all times (24mph).

All in all, pretty impressive. The time from Buzzards Bay to South Station is just 1:15 on the express trains, and 1:38 on the Friday outbounds (which are locals, and operated slower past MBO). The 1:15 is within 10-15 minutes of time-competitive with driving in perfect conditions. A 1:20 local would probably be doable once they're used to running on the track - and that's basically perfect for startup commuter service.

At that price, it is also less expensive than the Plymouth and Brockton bus, though the ride will be longer. Personally, I'd prefer the longer ride on the more comfortable train, even if the price exceeded the bus fare.

Is this routing cleared for Bi-levels,or only for "flats"(single-level),if this gets more ridership then planned ,
figure on MBCR using Bi-levels.

Bi-Levels not only fit but have been seen passengers on the Cape. A quick Google search yields a photo of it.

http://www.capecodrails.com/ds/rf97/ds_ ... ihoxie.jpg

And of course, this

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5BW34j0snbQ