Monday, January 7, 2013
The delays are due to a downed wire on the Amtrak line.
After facing delays and cancellations earlier today, passengers on south side commuter rail lines are likely to experience more delays during the afternoon commute. Commuters traveling on lines out of South Station, which includes the Needham line, should anticipate 15- to 30-minute delays during tonight's peak hour service, according to a press release issued this afternoon by the Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad Company (MBCR). The line terminates in Needham, and has three stops in town including, Needham Heights, Needham Center, Needham Junction and Hersey. The delays are due to an "Amtrak infrastructure issue" that occurred earlier this morning, the press release said. Around 5:10 a.m., the Amtrak rail line experienced a downed …
Tuesday, August 28, 2012
Signs posted on the Needham and Newburyport/Rockport commuter rail lines congratulate two area Olympians.
Trains traveling through Needham this week will be carrying a special message for local Olympian Aly Raisman. The Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad Company on Tuesday unveiled a banner congratulating Raisman on her two gold and one bronze medal earned in the 2012 Olympics. The banner will hang on a special coach in the MBTA's commuter rail fleet and will travel on the Needham line, according to a press release sent out by the MBTA. Another coach, which will travel the Newburyport/Rockport line, congratulates Olympian Kayla Harrison, a Marblehead resident who was the first American to win an Olympic gold medal in judo, according to the press release. Both coaches will display the banners for about one week.
Monday, July 16, 2012
How would you rate the on-time performance of the Needham Commuter Rail line?
The Massachusetts Bay Commuter Rail Company said the Needham line had a 96.9 percent contractual on-time performance rate in June. The MBCR said it has a contractually stipulated required goal of 95 percent. The MBCR said in a press release that "accounting for factors within MBCR's control the Needham line has exceeded its contractual OTP (on-time performance) goal of 95 percent in every month in 2012." For the year, the Needham line has been on time 96.8 percent of the time and reached its highest rate of 98.2 percent in February. How would you rate the commuter rail's timeliness of meeting its stated schedule?
Saturday, June 30, 2012
It will cost more to ride the T starting this weekend—and some routes will have decreased service.
On Sunday the MBTA's fare increases start. They're being imposed—along with service cuts—to close the transit agency's $160 million budget gap. Most of those service cuts also begin Sunday. In Needham, the local Commuter Rail line will be cut on Saturdays beginning July 7—delayed one week because of the July 4 events planned in Boston. The Needham Line already does not run on Sundays. There are other changes, like an increase in the surcharge for getting your Commuter Rail ticket on the train (if the station where you board has ticket machines). THE RIDE will add a more expensive $5 zone starting Oct. 1. For a complete list of changes taking place on the MBTA system beginning Sunday, visit this T link or check out the PDFs attached to this…
Monday, June 25, 2012
The local Commuter Rail trains will continue operating through the weekend to accommodate visitors during the Tall Ship and Fourth events.
The Commuter Rail's Needham Line will continue to operate through the upcoming holiday weekend, as plans to eliminate weekend service have been postponed until July 7. The Saturday service cut was part of the final plan approved by the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority in April in an effort to close a projected $161 million deficit in the 2013 fiscal year. The plan called for other cuts on various Commuter Rail and bus lines and an across-the-board fare increase. The changes were set to take place on July 1 with the start of the new fiscal year. While the fare increases are set to begin as scheduled, weekend service on Needham and other lines will not be eliminated until one week later. "A normal Sunday service will operate on …
42.28024
-71.23786
Needham Center Train Station
Great Plain Ave & Eaton Sq, Needham, MA
/articles/needham-line-service-cut-postponed-to-july-7
1270919
/locations/7315433
42.293177
-71.235823
Needham Heights Train Station
95 West St, Needham, MA
/articles/needham-line-service-cut-postponed-to-july-7
1270918
/locations/7315434
42.273344
-71.235261
Needham Junction Train Station
51 Junction St, Needham, MA
/articles/needham-line-service-cut-postponed-to-july-7
1270920
/locations/7315435
42.27582
-71.21486
Hersey Train Station
Great Plain Ave & Broad Meadow Rd, Needham, MA
/articles/needham-line-service-cut-postponed-to-july-7
1270921
/locations/7315436
Wednesday, March 28, 2012
Updated proposal would preserve the town's Bus 59 route and include a 23 percent fare increase across the board.
The Massachusetts Department of Transportation announced an updated budget plan today that would eliminate weekend Commuter Rail service in Needham but preserve the local bus route, Bus 59, that many people working and living in town rely on daily. The new plan, announced in a news release posted at 11:30 a.m. on mbta.com, serves to close a $185 million gap in the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority’s budget for fiscal year 2013. Along with limiting the service cuts originally proposed, the new plan includes an average fare increase of 23 percent, as opposed to the 35-43 percent increase outlined in the original proposal. The final proposal will be submitted for MBTA board approval by April 4 and is the result of more than two …
42.293177
-71.235823
Needham Heights Train Station
95 West St, Needham, MA
/articles/new-mbta-plan-would-eliminate-weekend-commuter-rail-service-in-needham
1270918
/locations/6679404
42.28024
-71.23786
Needham Center Train Station
Great Plain Ave & Eaton Sq, Needham, MA
/articles/new-mbta-plan-would-eliminate-weekend-commuter-rail-service-in-needham
1270919
/locations/6679405
42.27582
-71.21486
Hersey Train Station
Great Plain Ave & Broad Meadow Rd, Needham, MA
/articles/new-mbta-plan-would-eliminate-weekend-commuter-rail-service-in-needham
1270921
/locations/6679406
42.273344
-71.235261
Needham Junction Train Station
51 Junction St, Needham, MA
/articles/new-mbta-plan-would-eliminate-weekend-commuter-rail-service-in-needham
1270920
/locations/6679407
Tuesday, February 28, 2012
Commuter Rail and bus service are essential to the town's ability to attract businesses and home buyers, individuals said at a public hearing Monday night
Needham residents and town officials spoke out Monday night against the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority’s plan to cut service and raise fees, saying access to Boston was one of the things that attracted businesses and homebuyers to Needham. About 35 people attended the Needham Transportation Committee's public hearing on the MBTA proposals, held Feb. 27 at Town Hall. A panel of speakers including NTC members Richard Creem, Duncan Allen, Linda Hoard and Stephen McKnight, State Sen. Richard Ross, State Rep. Denise Garlick and MBTA Advisory Board Executive Director Paul Regan provided background on the issue and answered questions from the community. The MBTA is facing a $161 million deficit in fiscal year 2013, and Massachusetts …
42.28049
-71.23606
Needham Town Hall
1471 Highland Ave, Needham, MA
/articles/residents-speak-out-mbta-plan-is-bad-for-needham
2004019
/locations/6471478
Tuesday, February 14, 2012
More than 400 people turned out for the a public hearing in Boston on Monday, Feb. 13 to argue against proposals that would eliminate weekend Commuter Rail service, among other changes.
The proposed MBTA fare hikes fall disproportionally on the elderly, disabled, student and low income population, many people said at a packed-to-capacity public hearing Monday night in Boston. Following an Occupy Boston rally at Copley Square hundreds of people—many of them college students—flowed into the Boston Public Library. They filled the 342-seat auditorium and 110-seat overflow room by 6:05 p.m. "Some people got here at 4:30," a library worker said. Officials began turning away at least 100 people lined up inside the foyer and promised to add more public hearings to the already lengthy list. "If we try to raise the fare the way we are now, there won't be more money," said Back Bay resident Elliot Laffer. "There will be a failed…
42.293177
-71.235823
Needham Heights Train Station
95 West St, Needham, MA
/articles/protesters-rally-against-mbta-cuts
1270918
/locations/6375836
42.28024
-71.23786
Needham Center Train Station
Great Plain Ave & Eaton Sq, Needham, MA
/articles/protesters-rally-against-mbta-cuts
1270919
/locations/6375837
42.273344
-71.235261
Needham Junction Train Station
51 Junction St, Needham, MA
/articles/protesters-rally-against-mbta-cuts
1270920
/locations/6375838
Jason
3:53 pm on Tuesday, July 17, 2012
My train is later than the stated scheduled time in each direction every day. I travel the full length of the line from Needham Heights to South Station as part of my daily commute. I have been riding the entire length of the line since November 2011 and I cannot recall ONE day when either the 7:30am inbound or the 5:20 outbound arrived at the scheduled time or earlier. If "on-time" means within … more ›