New Yawkey Station

On Thursday the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority Board came to an agreement with the developers of the Fenway Center, a mixed-use project to be built over the Mass Pike. If approved by the state environmental officials, the construction of the first phase of the project will begin next summer.

The Fenway Center project will create new residencial, commercial, retail and shared-parking space, as well as a new full service commuter rail station at Yawkey Station.

You can find a few more details on the project and the new agreement by reading this MBTA news release.

Excited as I am at the prospect of the new Yawkey Station, I wish I knew answers to the following questions:

• Does the title "full service commuter rail station" require the station to have two platforms (as opposed to what is there now--just one)
• Would the existence of this brand new station actually affect the train schedule such that more inbound and outbound trains stop there?
• When would the construction of the new station be complete?
• How would the Fenway Project construction affect the current Yawkey Station and the Framingham/Worcester line train operation?

The Never Ending Fight Over The Yawkey Stop

Last week we sent the following letter to Mr. Daniel Grabauskas, the General Manager of the MBTA in reply to his last letter we received in June.

Dear Mr. Grabauskas,

Thank you very much for your letter of June 2, 2008. Again we appreciate your taking the time to answer our questions and address our concerns.

We would like to take this opportunity to present you with the reasons why the daily service to the Yawkey station should be restored for the P528 train. Each of the following reasons is explained in more detail below.
1) The P528 train is routinely on time when stopping at the Yawkey station for the Red Sox games, which demonstrates that the train will continue to run on time when making this stop on non-game days.
2) There is no evidence to show that the elimination of the P528 stop at the Yawkey station caused the on time performance improvements on the Framingham/Worcester line.
3) The number of people who regularly used the Yawkey station stop on the P528 train before the schedule change, and who will continue to use it if the stop is reintroduced far exceeds the count of 3 or 4 that the study you sited estimated.

1) In your letter you state that “between February 19 and May 12 [2008], P528 has been on time 59 out of 60 days for an OTP of 98%.” We are pleased to see such excellent on time performance. According to the Red Sox game schedule, there were 11 weekday evening home games between February 19 and May 12, 2008. We thus conclude that when P528 made the stop at Yawkey it was on time at least 10 out of 11 times (for an OTP of 91%), and potentially 11 out of 11 times (for an OTP of 100%), depending on when the single delay in question occurred. Such excellent on time performance on Red Sox evening game days when ridership is higher then normal indicates that the P528 train can consistently run on time while making the stop at Yawkey on non-game days.

2) We are happy to experience the improved on time performance of the trains on the Framingham/Worcester line. However, so far we have not been presented with any conclusive evidence that the OTP improvements resulted from the elimination of the stop at Yawkey. In fact, the elimination of the Yawkey station stop for the P528 train was one of multiple schedule changes applied to all trains on the Framingham/Worcester Line on February 18, 2008. Thus, there is no baseline data to which the current data can be compared.

3) We continue to believe that your estimates for the number of passengers regularly riding the P528 train and using the Yawkey stop are inaccurate and low. We hope you will look at the data we enclose, Survey Results of Commuters Employed by The MathWorks, which we collected from other commuter rail users who work for the same company that we both work for. Our data shows higher utilization of the Yawkey stop, and calls into question the accuracy of the MBTA study results you sited to support your decision to eliminate the Yawkey stop from the P528 schedule.

In your letter from March 21, 2008, you site the following reasons for removing the Yawkey station from the P528 train schedule: low utilization of the stop by P528 train passengers, insufficient time for both P528 and P531 trains to make the stop, and improved on time performance of the P528 train. The data from our survey suggests that the utilization of the Yawkey station by the P528 passengers was higher then 3 or 4 people a day prior to the February 18, 2008 schedule change. Also the data from the days when the P528 train stops at Yawkey shows that making the stop regularly will not delay the train.

If you still have concerns on any of these points, or if there are other issues preventing the regular stop that we are not aware of, please explain. If our points and data are not sufficient to return the stop, please consider running a pilot P528 schedule change to include the Yawkey stop for a period of 2 or 3 months. Then you will have the P528 on time performance data available that will include the overall schedule changes that came in effect on February 18, 2008, and the stop at Yawkey. We are confident that the analysis of the data will show that making the stop is not detrimental to the P528 on time performance.

We thank you for your time, and hope you will consider our suggestion. Please feel free to contact us directly.

Sincerely,

[Names and addresses edited out here]

Enclosure

And here is the enclosure:

Survey Results of Commuters Employed by The MathWorks

We work for a private software company, the MathWorks, located in Natick. In July, we conducted a short survey of the MathWorks employees who regularly commute to work, in order to determine how many of them regularly use or used the Yawkey stop while riding the P528 train. The results are as follows:

Before the schedule change of February 18, 2008
6.7 --> Average number of people riding the P528 train
5.5 --> Average number of people getting off at Yawkey
After the schedule change
5.1 --> Average number of people riding the P528 train
If P528 train stopped at Yawkey every day
6.1 --> Average number of people who would get off at Yawkey

The results of our survey indicate that prior to the February 18, 2008 schedule change 5 or 6 MathWorks employees got off the P528 train at the Yawkey station daily. The results show higher usage of the station as compared to the results of the MBTA survey. Moreover, our results do not take into account any riders who do not work at the MathWorks, any new riders who have started working at the MathWorks in August or later, and the rapidly increasing population of the Fenway area.

Fascinating Train Scheduling Logic

Last Tuesday morning the Framingham/Worcester line was a tremendous mess due to a communication failure. Trains in both directions were significantly delayed, and some were cancelled. I watched an inbound train with no lights or air conditioning arrive at Back Bay, carrying two trains worth of passengers. People, wide-eyed, open-mouthed gasping for air, and flushed with heat and anger, jumped off that train like lemmings off the cliff in their staged suicide.

When I finally boarded a Framingham train, the initial excitement at the prospect of finally getting to work quickly turned to frustation. The train was moving very slowly, making all the Newton stops. According to the schedule none of the outbound trains stop at any Newton stops before 11am. Yet, here was our train traveling well before 9am, and making all stops. Why?

I went to talk to the conductor, and his explanation was, “just in case.” Just in case what? In case any people were waiting for a train or any passengers wanted to get off the train… at an unscheduled stop? In case anyone was at the platform 2+ hours early?

Would any sane person wait for or get on a train “just in case?” The conductor did later concede that his superiors ordered the train to make all stops. However, I am not sure if this extra information made me feel better.

The Fight Over Yawkey Stop Continues...

I interrupt my impressions on Moscow (more to come soon) to bring you another disappointing letter with have received last week from Mr. Daniel Grabauskas, the General Manager of the MBTA. The following is letter retyped here word for word:

Thank you for your follow up letter of May 1, 2008 regarding the elimination of the Yawkey stop for train P528.

Observations of utilization of Yawkey Station by passengers on P528 were performed randomly over a period of three weeks prior to the overhaul of the entire Framingham/Worcester Line schedule. In addition, the crews of P528 were interviewed about the observations they made relative to P528. The crews confirmed that three or four passengers got off of train P528 on a daily basis.

The revised Framingham/Worcester Line schedules, implemented on Monday, February 18, 2008, are the culmination of a lengthy period of analysis aimed at achieving improved, predictable On Time Performance (OTP). Since the introduction of the new schedules, the desired goal has been achieved.

The OTP for train P528 has improved dramatically. Between January 1, 2008 and February 15, 2008, P528 was on time 21 out of 33 days for an OTP of 67%. Between February 19 and May 12, P528 has been on time 59 out of 60 days for an OTP of 98%. The overall performance of the Framingham/Worcester Line for the same period has increased from 71% to 92%. We are pleased that the adjustments that were made to the schedules have resulted in the improvement we sought to achieve.

Thank you again for taking the time to write.

Why is this letter disappointing? It fails to provide any real data from the survey allegedly conducted by the MBTA on Yawkey Station use. The letter also gives all credit for the drastic improvement in the On Time Performance of the P528 train to the elimination of the stop. It disregards the significant changes made to the train schedules on the Framingham/Worcester line that took effect on the same day as the elimination of the Yawkey stop.

Again, we plan to reply to this letter. We are also considering providing some real data to Mr. Grabauskas that shows a lot more people using the Yawkey Stop on the P528 train before it was eliminated.

On MBTA Response About Yawkey Station

Last Saturday Alexander and I received the letter from Mr. Daniel Grabauskas, the General Manager of MBTA, in response to our two letters regarding the schedule changes on the Framingham/Worcester line and the elimination of the Yawkey station.

The letter claims that a passenger count showed only 3-4 people getting off the P528 train at Yawkey. This data is outrageous, as at least 5 of my coworkers used the Yawkey station daily before the schedule changed, not counting all the other people riding P528 train who are not employed by my company.

The letter also claims that elimination of the Yawkey stop caused P528 to run on time. Unfortunately, the schedule change and the elimination of the Yawkey stop happened on the same day. So Mr. Grabauskas cannot state conclusively whether it is the schedule change, the elimination of Yawkey, or both of those changes that positively affected the P528 on-time performance.

Our next steps are to reply to Mr. Daniel Grabauskas asking him to provide us with the details of the passenger counts done by the MBTA Railroad Operations group. We will also write to Mr. Bob Stoetzel, the MBTA Commuter Rail Director, forwarding him Mr. Grabauskas’s letter, and asking him to take action.

MBTA Response On Elimination Of Yawkey

The following is a word for word letter we have received from Mr. Daniel Grabauskas, MBTA General Manager, in response to our letter questioning the February 18th schedule changes and the letter questioning elimination of the Yawkey stop from the P528 train.

Thank you for your letters of February 22, 2008 regarding the elimination of train P528 at Yawkey Station.

I am sorry for the inconveniences this schedule change has on the customers that utilize this station for their local commute. These schedule changes are always done after a great deal of review and are in fact predicated on ridership demand.

I would like this opportunity to explain why the Yawkey stop was removed from the schedule of train P528 and the reason behind that decision.

Yawkey is a single-track station on a double track railroad, having the capability to board passengers from one track only. Our Railroad Operations group performed station passenger counts and the results indicate 3 to 4 passengers getting off the train P528 at Yawkey. Further evaluation revealed that Peak Period Train P531 regularly picks up approximately 30 customers on their homebound commute and that there was insufficient time to stop both P528 and P531 at Yawkey station.

The operations log for January through March show train P528 was operating at only 59% in January, 85% for February (schedule change became effective February 18) and thus far in March its on time performance is now at 100%.

With regard to the seasonal stop at Yawkey for Red Sox games, this will occur approximately 58 times during the season for games starting at 7:05pm. On those dates the outbound rush hour trains will be favored for on-time performances and causing delays to P528.

Thank you for taking the time to write.

Sincerely,

Daniel A. Grabauskas
General Manager

Talking to the Director of the MBTA Commuter Rail

On March 4, Alexander and I had an opportunity to take part in the MWRTA meeting where Mr. Bob Stoetzel, the director of the MBTA Commuter Rail, was the main speaker. Below are some notes we took at the meeting, which I thought maybe of interest.

Things we learned:

• According to the MBTA CIP, the Commonwealth is providing funding for station improvements at the Yawkey Station.
• MBTA, not CSX, owns the tracks between Framingham and South Station
• MBTA does conference calls with CSX 3 times a week, Monday, Wednesday and Friday, to go over every train delay and determine the cause of the problem
• Most of the problems now are caused by mechanical failure
• There is no spare equipment. In other words, in cases of a mechanical failure, there are no spare locomotives, coaches, etc to put in place of broken ones. According to Mr. Stoetzel, the industry norm is to have a 10-15% equipment surplus. However, MBTA has historically chosen to operate under a "if we own it, we use it" policy, with virtually no excess equipment.
• The train crew, including conductors, has to know the reason for a delay. It is the conductors’ responsibility to report the delay to the dispatch and provide the reason. The conductors are supposed to make announcements every 5 minutes on the status of the delay.
• Since December, it is now inappropriate for MBCR to blame a delay on CSX
• The P517/P526 occasional rescheduling is driven by MBTA’s snow policy, which in turn depends whether the mayor’s office declares a snow emergency in the city. Normally there are no outbound trains going past Framingham between noon and 4pm. Mr. Stoetzel made no comment about P517/P526 schedule changes made on the day before Thanksgiving and Christmas.
• ROC—Riders Oversight Committee—allows MBTA riders to be heard. ROC consists of 14 members, 7 of whom are general public. Currently none of the 7 general public members are commuter rail riders.
• New passenger information system is coming in approximately 2 years, that will be utilizing GPS and satellite technology to provide updates in real time. The current electronic display boards are updated via a series of phone calls initiated by the engineer of a delayed train. This system fails often.
• Customer Service emails submitted via the MBTA website are handled by MBCR, not by MBTA staff. Mr. Stoeztel does not have routine access to either the complaints or the MBCR responses. Up until 2 or 3 years ago these emails were handled by MBTA directly.

On the recent schedule changes:

• A study was conducted starting in December, pushed by State Representative, Alice Peisch, to help determine where the problems are
• The latest schedule was built from scratch (and by hand—no software)
• Many delays were caused by what is usually referred to as “residual delay”: if one train is delayed, the train following it has to travel with decreased speed, because it catches up with red signals left behind the delayed train
• To avoid the residual delay, the new schedules increased the time between trains to be at least 20-25 minutes. [I think this may be more relevant to peak direction trains].
• Mr. Stoetzel acknowledges that the schedule changes were geared towards peak direction commuters. Historically, the schedules are arranged with only the peak direction commuters in mind. The reverse direction train schedule is determined on the basis of how best to get the equipment, i.e. the trains, in the strategically correct locations at the proper time to better serve the peak direction commuters. Mr. Stoetzel also said that the reverse commuter volume has been steadily growing, and that MBTA may start looking into how to change the schedules in order to serve the reverse direction commuters better.
• Mr. Stoetzel granted that if the P526 can stop at Yawkey on game nights, it should be possible to make this stop on non-game nights as well. He did not have an explanation for this inconsistency.

More Letters to MBTA's GM, Mr. Daniel Grabauskas

In reaction to the recently implemented scheduled changes on the Framingham/Worcester commuter rail line, today we sent the following 2 letters to Mr. Daniel Grabauskas, the General Manager of the MBTA.

• Why were the schedule changes implemented


• Please bring the Yawkey stop back for the P528 inbound evening train

We Want The Yawkey Stop Back

Dear Mr. Grabauskas,

Since the beginning of January, we have been enjoying a much improved on-time performance on the Framingham/Worcester commuter rail line, and we are grateful to MBTA for their efforts to bring about these improvements. Thus it is even harder to face the new schedule changes on the Framingham/Worcester line that include the removal of service to the Yawkey stop on the P528 inbound train.

The elimination of the Yawkey stop on the P528 trains increases the commute time for everyone who lives in the Fenway, Brookline, Allston and Newton areas by at least 40 minutes. The Fenway area has been rapidly growing in the past couple of years. Eliminating the stop at Yawkey on the rush-hour train cannot serve to attract any new riders for the commuter rail, and is instead forcing many current commuters to find alternative options to get home.

Furthermore, MBTA’s commitment to stop at Yawkey on Red Sox home game days shows that MBTA thinks it is possible to run P528 on time and stop at Yawkey. From our experience, trains always run with a delay of at least several minutes on game days because more then usual number of people have to board the train, and most of them get off at Yawkey, thus increasing the time required for each stop. If P528 can stop at Yawkey and operate in a timely fashion on Red Sox game days when the commuter rail system seems to be severely stressed, then the train ought to be able to make the same stop every weekday.

We believe that improvement of service does not involve removing service customers heavily rely on. Thus, we ask that P528 schedule be changed to include the stop at Yawkey on all weekdays. We hope that MBTA can find our arguments logical, and will consider us—passholders and every-day commuter rail riders--an important constituency.

We thank you for your time, and hope to see performance of the Framingham/Worcester commuter rail line continue to improve. Please feel free to contact us directly.

Questioning The Schedule Changes

Dear Mr. Grabauskas,

Thank you very much for taking time to respond to our petition in your letter dated January 2, 2008.

Since the beginning of January, we have been enjoying a much improved on-time performance on the Framingham/Worcester commuter rail line. After over a month of very satisfactory service, especially for the P528 train, it is particularly difficult to understand the schedule changes put into effect on February 18th for the Framingham/Worcester line. We would appreciate answers to our questions regarding the changes.

1. Why did the schedule changes need to be implemented, given that the trains appeared to be running very close to schedule in January. Was the improved on-time performance the result of MBTA, MBCR or CSX making some sort of a temporary arrangement until schedule changes could go into effect?
   
2. Why was the Yawkey stop eliminated on the P528 train? If P528 can run in a timely fashion with the stop at Yawkey (as MBTA promises to do on Red Sox home game days), why is it necessary to omit the stop? We are concerned that many riders who benefit from this stop on a daily basis will now experience a decrease in overall usability of the Framingham/Worcester line.

We thank you for your time, and hope that you can address our questions and concerns. Please feel free to contact us directly.