Bench bars at Cambridge T stops draw criticism as ‘hostile architecture’ aimed at the homeless
The City Council voted 8-1 on Monday to ask the MBTA to reconsider a bench design some consider “hostile architecture” installed recently at Cambridge T stations.
Transit in 2020, driven by coronavirus pandemic, must sort through mixed signals of coming year
The Covid-19 pandemic has had far-ranging effects on how we get around Greater Boston – all of which will have to be rethought as the pandemic ebbs in the coming year.
Service reductions to MBTA have been softened, but will start in January and be reviewed in March
The MBTA’s Financial Management and Control Board has approved service cuts that will start going into effect in January. The members of the board voted 3-2 to approve the cuts during a four-hour Monday meeting.
MBTA might undo expected service reductions, as vaccines, stimulus hint at ‘return to normal’
The MBTA has signaled it could scale back plans to significantly cut service after public outcry and its own advisory board suggested the cuts were not justified. It was deferring the presentation of the first round of cuts by a week, to a Monday meeting.
There’s no justification for MBTA service cuts, according to the agency’s own advisory board
The MBTA is forging ahead with proposed cuts to service despite the MBTA’s own advisory board finding “no budgetary justification” for them and polling showing the public strongly opposed.
First modest tests for streets in Harvard Square, then maybe steps toward European walkability
Rethinking Harvard Square to make it more like famously walkable cities such as Munich and Copenhagen won strong support from city councillors last week at a committee meeting.
Riverbend Park gets extension into colder times, while shared streets will be gone with the winter
While there will at least another month of use at “Riverbend Park” on parts of Memorial Drive, Cambridge’s shared streets initiative will be dismantled for the winter and may not return in the spring.
Under proposed cuts, T would end hour earlier, bus routes will be cut, rail run only on weekdays
The MBTA released plans Monday to end weekend commuter rail service, cut bus routes and shut down T service an hour earlier each night. These deep reductions come as the agency grapples with the fallout of lower ridership due to Covid-19 and a ballooning projected budget deficit.
MBTA switches to 100% renewable energy starting Jan. 1; Three-year contract signed
The MBTA has signed a contract to switch its electricity supply to 100 percent renewable energy starting Jan. 1. The move will save an estimated $3.5 million dollars annually at a time the agency faces large budget cuts from Covid-19 ridership dips.
With new red line MBTA cars delayed by a year, eyes turn toward other forms of transportation
In a city where development and much of daily life relies on mass transit, word of a yearlong delay in the first new MBTA cars in decades – and the increased capacity they promise – has been met with resignation and a boost for bikes and buses.
