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And to re-iterate, there will be access from the station building to the platform through means of underground access up to the platform. The vertical up-and-over discussion vs. a new tunnel is based around the east end of the platform, MBTA parking lot access to the east of I-290.

The MBTA material describing the Worcester station platform project mentioned that Worcester is the only station on the line that can handle only one train at a time. It's the only station where passenger service has 1-track operation. As B&A says above, the Newton stations only physically have...

Most new stations have at least two points of access/egress for safety and ADA reasons. As for a 2nd tunnel, the track level was built up artificially. Not really sure how well it would hold up to new boring/drilling. By far it is cheaper and a more known condition to go up-and-over then to bore a n...

Correct, access from the station concourse will from ground level up to platform level, similar to how it currently is. The up-and-over is on the MBTA's parking lot end, and the lot is split level with most of it below the grade of the tracks. So you already have to climb up stairs from the parking ...

Unfortunately sometimes progress requires a little pain. They are installing the temporary platform so they can then build a brand-new platform to replace the existing one. Looks like MBTA is going to board out of their layover facility this weekend, and then going forward until the new station plat...

To be fair, Downeaster service includes MBTA (Keolis) as a host as well. Additionally, Pan Am accounts for portions of the New Haven-Greenfield and Vermonter services, which operate over the Conn River on Pan Am and both passed at 89% and 85%, respectively. The only way to know what Pan Am's portion...

Newpy's right, the actual dispatching needs to be done in state. That's why CSX is keeping 2 desks there - presumably Districts 2 and 3. And to be clear it doesn't require any particular number of dispatchers, just that the MBTA lines owned by the state be dispatched in the state. As I've stated bef...

Massachusetts had enough foresight in the freight-favorable agreement that they agreed to B&M dispatching state-owned (MBTA) property so long as said dispatching remained in the state. Considering Pan Am currently only has 3 dispatching districts, of which 2 are commonly combined into 1 desk, ke...

No, it's intended to be permanent and work with the new AFC system when it comes online. If they're spending money and installing gates on the concourse that's not really "temporary". What was temporary were the people who were checking passes. Would've been done much earlier of not for CO...

As long as station parking + train fare is less than the cost of parking downtown then I think it's fine. I don't like the potential of incentivizing people to drive to the station when they could potentially get there in other more sustainable ways whether that's walking, biking, or taking a local...

Old Colony to Worcester or the NEC while skipping South Station is possible as a continuous move, there is a wye track connecting them. While you are right there is very little capital cost to try it, the rub has always been upsetting the existing passengers. In order to advance different scheduling...

CCRTA is MassDOT, MBTA is MassDOT. Passenger service over the route exists, it's just being adjusted. I think it's harder to make the case that it's a new service than it is to argue it isn't. Again, there is a difference between "service of any kind" and "intercity or commuter rail ...

As Red Wing noted some of the Commuter Rail parking lots are not MBTA controlled. Additionally, several of said parking lots were already full pre-COVID even with the parking fee. I don't think it would make a difference on the Commuter Rail side unless there were some underutilized lots. You'd real...

I'll point out that when the Red Line has new signals and all old cars are retired they'll be at 3 minute headways - or 20 tph. I'd like to see the performance, track speeds, station spacing, signal requirements, train control system, etc, of that 24tph system. Is it pretty isolated, like a US trans...

Yes, this track allows that possibility. Whether it happens or not is up to Pan Am/MBTA/Keolis in terms of train operations. They may have found they like the Western Route better, who knows?