MBTA CR Space-Time Warp Continuum

How'd they do this... from the MBTA Update Page:

#

Worcester/Framingham Line:

# Inbound Worcester train #524 (2:00 PM) is running one hour and twenty minutes/80 minutes late between Worcester and Ashland, but is on time from Framingham into Boston.

One train that defies the laws of physics?
Two trains with the same number, so that the latter leaves a closer station before the former arrives at a farther station?

Perhaps the MBTA has been running the fastest bullet trains on Earth without us knowing. Maybe the train is equiped with a teleporter and teleports from station to station between Framingham and Boston, but runs like a regular train from Worcester to Ashland. Or maybe Doc Brown equiped it with a Flux Capaciter and it teleported to 1955, then 2025, then to 1885, then back to 2005. Or maybe the Zak Gibbs gave his time stopping watch to the train operator. Or maybe Timmy Turner is the train operator. Or the T is once again, lying on their website.

The MBTA Update page has been updated to say...

#

Worcester/Framingham Line:

# Inbound Worcester train #524 (2:00 PM) ran one hour and twenty minutes/80 minutes late between Worcester and Ashland. An "extra," unscheduled train, #P924, picked up customers from Framingham into Boston.
# However, this train, P924, was held up by a fallen tree on the track at Wellesley Farms, so inbound Framingham P526 is picking up customers from Wellesley Farms and bringing everyone into Boston.

Quite the cluster

Perhaps the MBTA has been running the fastest bullet trains on Earth without us knowing. Maybe the train is equiped with a teleporter and teleports from station to station between Framingham and Boston, but runs like a regular train from Worcester to Ashland. Or maybe Doc Brown equiped it with a Flux Capaciter and it teleported to 1955, then 2025, then to 1885, then back to 2005. Or maybe the Zak Gibbs gave his time stopping watch to the train operator. Or maybe Timmy Turner is the train operator. Or the T is once again, lying on their website.

Wow, that's VERY strange outthere, how could a train be held up and get on time?? Maybe going thru that "time machine" like Back to the Future Part 3, especially at the end of the film......

What probably happened was that there was enough advanced notice of the problem (i.e. the train died in Worcester sometime before the scheduled departure time) so that an extra set of equipment could be sent out from Boston, turned at Framingham so that there was an on-time departure from the stations from Framingham in.

Just a guess on my part.

130MM wrote:What probably happened was that there was enough advanced notice of the problem (i.e. the train died in Worcester sometime before the scheduled departure time) so that an extra set of equipment could be sent out from Boston, turned at Framingham so that there was an on-time departure from the stations from Framingham in.

Just a guess on my part.

Yeah, right. This is the T we're talking about, the same agency can't even seem to notify subway passesngers of significant delays in service (It happened to me four different times this week, significant delays and no announcements! Four times!). I highly doubt they'd care enough to dispatch a whole set to Framingham for an inbound extra.

The operations managment of the MBCR can be creative in their attempts to maintain service. I would second the proposition that an extra was called to deadhead equipment to Framingham to plug the service gap. The MBCR is not the MBTA and if they got that trainout of Framingham into Boston on time, More power to them!

SnoozerZ49 wrote:The operations managment of the MBCR can be creative in their attempts to maintain service. I would second the proposition that an extra was called to deadhead equipment to Framingham to plug the service gap. The MBCR is not the MBTA and if they got that trainout of Framingham into Boston on time, More power to them!

Yeah, I feel from experience and from what I've heard that MBCR is well-run by professionals who know and care about what they're doing - not political hacks like the T.

NealG wrote:

130MM wrote:What probably happened was that there was enough advanced notice of the problem (i.e. the train died in Worcester sometime before the scheduled departure time) so that an extra set of equipment could be sent out from Boston, turned at Framingham so that there was an on-time departure from the stations from Framingham in.

Just a guess on my part.

Yeah, right. This is the T we're talking about, the same agency can't even seem to notify subway passesngers of significant delays in service (It happened to me four different times this week, significant delays and no announcements! Four times!). I highly doubt they'd care enough to dispatch a whole set to Framingham for an inbound extra.

Sorry to burst your bubble, but this kind of move is done all the time. Depending on the amount of delay, and the availability of equipment of course.