Transit Briefs: MBTA, SFMTA

Written by Carolina Worrell, Senior Editor
Phase 1 of the South Coast Rail project is fully funded, and construction is nearing completion.

Phase 1 of the South Coast Rail project is fully funded, and construction is nearing completion.

Voters in two Massachusetts cities, New Bedford and Fall River, have voted to join the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) in allowing the agency to move forward with its South Coast Rail project. Also, the San Francisco Municipal Transportation Authority (SFMTA) opens new Muni metro station in the heart of Union Square and announces that it will switch over to a new, upgraded software system.

MBTA

According to a Boston.com report, voters in the Massachusetts cities of New Bedford and Fall River on Nov. 8 “overwhelmingly” voted to approve the MBTA’s South Coast Rail service to Taunton, Fall River and New Bedford, “clearing one of the final hurdles for commuter rail service from Boston to the South Coast.”

The South Coast Rail project, which is divided into two contracts, first broke ground in 2019 with service slated to begin in 2023, and will extend commuter rail service to Taunton, Fall River and New Bedford—the only major cities within 50 miles of Boston that do not currently have commuter rail access to Boston, via the existing Middleborough/Lakeville Line, according to the MBTA, and as reported by Boston.com.

The project, which has been “in talks” for more than 30 years, includes eventually extending the commuter rail service from Stoughton to “connect more communities to the New Bedford and Fall River lines,” but, according to the Boston.com report, “any city or town looking to receive MBTA service must obtain voters’ approval by Jan. 1 of the year service is set to begin under state law.”

According to the Boston.com report, 80.43% of voters in New Bedford and 78% of voters in Fall River were in favor of extending the commuter rail service.

Phase 1 of the South Coast Rail project, which includes extending a secondary line west from the existing Middleborough/Lakeville Line, and creating the New Bedford and Fall River lines is fully funded, and construction is nearing completion.

The second phase of the project will include construction of the New Bedford Main Line, the Middleborough Secondary Line, and the signal system for the entire Phase 1 corridor, which will connect Taunton, New Bedford and Fall River to Boston.

Phase 1 of the South Coast Rail project includes extending a secondary line west from the existing Middleborough/Lakeville Line, and creating the New Bedford and Fall River lines. (MBTA)

SFMTA

SFMTA on Nov. 8 announced that the new Muni Central Subway Union Square/Market Street Station, which puts customers in the heart of San Francisco, beneath Union Square Plaza at Geary and Stockton streets, is now open—just in time to enjoy Macy’s famous holiday window displays and ice skating on the plaza.

Additionally, SFMTA announced Nov. 10 that it will switch over to a new, upgraded software system on Sunday, Nov. 13, as part of the agency’s Next Generation Customer Information System (CIS) project.

The new software, which was developed to “improve the way different information systems communicate with each other and share data to and from multiple sources,” will provide customers “more accurate, timely and reliable Muni service predictions,” SFMTA said in a release. “This is one more step in the overhaul of our CIS that will enable us to provide better service to Muni customers,” the agency added.

Next Generation Customer Information Display Installations Map

The Next Generation CIS software has been in preliminary testing for months, and if all works well, “Muni customers should not notice any change,” said SFMTA, which added that unanticipated challenges may arise and that customers should expect some glitches, as the agency makes the software switch and works out issues on the back end.

To reduce impacts to customers, SFMTA says it is gradually connecting new screens to the new software system, which should “help isolate any issues to troubleshoot more effectively.” “Our CIS staff and software contractors will be keeping a close eye on system performance and working quickly to resolve issues,” the agency added.

According to SFMTA, this upgrade is “a crucial milestone toward providing many features over the coming months,” including:

  • Dynamic maps.
  • Real-time service changes.
  • Short-term route changes.
  • Terminal departure predictions.
  • Transfer connection predictions.
  • Regional connections.
  • Alternative routes.
  • Accessibility information.
  • Vehicle crowding predictions.

According to SMFTA, the agency provides open-source transit data that third-party transit apps use on their platforms. Each app, the agency adds, has its own way of processing that information, which can vary and may lead to differences or inconsistencies in transit information. SFMTA says that it is in touch with known third-party apps to help them troubleshoot issues.

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