The Brattle Rant, Part One

Aaah, the Brattle Loop, one of my most favorite topics about the Green Line, and one of the most irritating segments of the entirety of the Central Subway, or the MBTA itself for that matter. The Loop itself is the third track visible across from the outbound (eastbound) platform at Government Center, with an older portion visible behind a wall blocking it off from the inbound platform. This older section is original to the loop's construction, dating back to Scollay Square station, while the visible section, with the PCC murals and a totally useless side platform connected to nothing was built when the Loop was realigned, during the creation of Government Center. Originally a more complex line with a greater purpose, the primary function of the Loop today is as a parking lot, with trains being stored there throughout the day, until needed for the rush hours. To me, this is the single greatest piece of evidence of what I call MBTA logic, the strange and sometimes incomprehensible method by which the MBTA arrives at decisions on any particular policy. The Brattle situation might actually be less illogical than the ill-fated T Radio debacle, where the (T) decided that it would be a good idea to fill their stations with blastingly loud music, to further rile, I mean to entertain the passengers customers. However, as that situation was quickly and loudly resolved, the Brattle remains the best, most evident, show of this odd brand of 'logic'. There are obviously a number of passengers who use the Green Line to access North Station, due to the number of Commuter Rail trains, as well as the Downeaster. Unfortunately, despite operating under these conditions for up to forty-five years, the MBTA still decides to run less than half of all eastbound Green Line trains further than Government Center. Running the B and D lines only to GC does make sense, as the D is a long route out to Riverside, while the B line suffers from an overabundance of stops and passengers that make it a slow route. However, this leaves only the E and C lines serving North Station. The C line is generally fine, excluding major unavoidable incidents or delays, and its trains are usually on time and not overly packed. The E line is a bit different, as the low number of cars makes the line VERY crowded at times, and therefore this slows and can inhibit service to North Station, as passengers may find that there is no room to board a Lechmere train at rush hour. Thus, North Station-bound passengers are left with the service of what equates to roughly 1.5 lines, out of the total 4, with Lechmere passengers having one on paper, and less than that in reality. There is a potential remedy for this, one that would cost little to no extra money for the debt-ridden agency, and one that would provide a greater level of service for the North Station end of the Central Subway. That solution is to use the track capacity of the Brattle Loop for something other than storage, which I will go into more detail about in the second portion of this rant, to be posted sometime over the weekend.

And so it goes, another day parked forever on the Brattle Loop, 'neath the streets of boston.