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[quote user="MisterBeasley"]Boston is also a spoke-and-hub system.  (Boston sometimes refers to itself as The Hub, but the implication is "Hub of the Universe.")  The T, the light rail and subway system, is pretty good in terms of covering the metro area.  However, the commuter rail which links in the outer suburbs leaves much to be desired.  It really is "commuter rail," and is focused on providing service for daily commuters, not occasional riders who might want to attend the theater or a sporting event. And, as a hub-and-spoke system, it's basically useless for going anywhere except in and out of the city.  I can drive to work in about 20 minutes, or I can drive for 15 minutes to a train station, pay to park, ride a train for 10 minutes and then walk another 15 minutes to work, rain or shine.  Since downtown is not my destination, the people who run the T don't care about me, except when it comes time to raise taxes state-wide to pay for their pensions.[/quote] I'll agree with that...If I want to get anywhere on another line, I have to take the hour-and-15-minute ride in from Westborough Station, switch trains, and then then go right back out of the city. By the time I get there it'll be time to go home in time for dinner! I wrote a letter to the Lt. Governor Tim Murray (a huge proponent of commuter rail) as well as to the editor of the Worcester Telegram asking for the line between Worcester and Ayer (on the Fitchburg Line, which is getting upgrades that will allow 80 mph track speeds) to get commuter rail service. Then instead of commuting in and out on the slow Worcester line, I could walk right from work at the Museum of Science to North Station, hop aboard a Fitchburg Line train, speed out to Ayer at 80 mph, and then take the Worcester-Ayer shuttle to a local station like Clinton or West Boylston!But due to the MBTA's equipment shortage, their multi-million dollar debt, and the fact that it would take millions more to upgrade Pan Am's ill-maintained track from a mix of 10 and 25 mph track to anything resembling a commuter railroad, I don't think that's going to happen in the near future...My personal dream is to have that line upgraded to at least 40 and have commuter service from Ayer to Worcester, and then down to Providence on the P&W! And while I'm at it, the Worcester line will be upgraded for Amtrak's Inland Route and have frequent service to Framingham, Worcester, Springfield, and New Haven where it connects back up to the NEC! [:-^]
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