Dear Senator Brownsberger
I am sending you a copy of my email to the MBTA yesterday regarding the 73 bus.
A friend let me know that you are monitoring the bus route.
Many thanks
Zoe
I have already tweeted/messaged you about this however I was waiting at Payson Road for 20 minutes this morning. I just missed the 735am bus and according to the schedule there should have been another bus at 741 and then a few thereafter. I did not get on a bus until 8am. During which time I saw 6 buses go “outbound” and between 735 and 745 – 4. it said there was a “minor traffic delay” – but I really find it hard to believe that it would cause 4-6 buses to get backed up. Especially at 7/730 am when the traffic really is not that bad. If this is something that happens regularly can there not be some kind of system to prevent this – i.e. an extra bus at the terminus? This is not the first time I’ve seen 4+ buses going out and people stuck waiting to go in. That delay caused me to get to work at 850 vs probably 830 if not earlier. Which when I am trying to leave at 430 to pick my daughter up from day care makes a significant impact.
On another note – but related – has the MBTA ever considered petitioning Boston/Cambridge etc city council to install bus lanes – e.g. along Mass Ave even during peak rush hours -this would seriously improve transit times and probably encourage more people to take the bus. I am originally from Dublin, Ireland another old city with equally small roads but we made this work and it has greatly improved morning and evening commute times.
Anyway, I look forward to hearing from you – I do hope you look in to this incident seriously – these kind of delays, especially on a good weather day are ridiculous and seriously affect people’s days.
Thanks
Zoe
Thank you, Zoe.
I think a lot of the impact comes from the traffic delays associated with the construction in Waverley Square. There have been many lane closures.
We are looking at the bus lane concept as it relates to the 73 near the intersection of Fresh Pond parkway and. Mount Auburn.
Let me see what I can learn about the Mass Ave bus lanes. In general, the answer is yes. These are very much under discussion. But let me find out what the true latest status is.
The #73 bus schedule is really the pits. Last Saturday (Dec. 12), my wife and I arrived at 3:30 pm by the stop in front of the Mount Auburn Street post office near Harvard Square. We had to wait until about 4 pm before a #73 bus arrived going to Waverly Square. Just before our bus arrived, however, three #73 buses went by on their way into the Harvard Square station!
According to fellow (irritated) passengers, this was all “business as usual”! (I should mention that my wife and I use the T only now and again.)
Thanks — Chris
Couldn’t agree with you both more!
This is why we need to focus better on improving core service!
About 5 times in the last few weeks (Nov.-Dec. 2015), I have been waiting for a 73 bus during off-peaks hours that never came. It’s bad enough that the off-peak headways are 20-25 minutes on what the T calls a “key route”, but when that turns into 40-50 minutes and you’re just trying to get home in the evening and the bus is packed, it’s outrageous.