commentsOnPizza t1_j674fde wrote
Reply to comment by _Karagoez_ in I took a 2 1/2 hour flight from Chicago to Boston. It took me 2 1/2 hours to get from Logan to Watertown Square by jenkneefur28
I've always wondered if the Red-Blue connector would be worth it compared to other projects.
Personally, it feels like a GLX from Union to Porter would be more useful for me. Or a GLX to Medford Square. How much are you trying to go Red to Blue other than the airport? For people on the Blue Line, it would open up commuting to Kendall Square easier, maybe South Station as well, though DTX and Chinatown aren't that far (Orange Line), unless you're looking to cross to the Seaport. A Blue Line extension to Lynn would get a lot more people on the subway. Resurrecting the Green Line A-Branch to Watertown would help a lot of people. Extending the Orange Line into Roslindale. Turning the Fairmount Commuter Rail into a new T line with frequent service would serve a large area and the heart of where Black people in Boston live. Making the Commuter Rail an electrified regional rail system with frequent, all-day service could make a huge difference - especially with the zoning bill that has density requirements near Commuter Rail stops. Using Track 61 to go from Back Bay to the BCEC and hook that up to good rail service. Giving Chelsea decent service (since it'll soon be the densest city in Massachusetts) maybe with the Orange Line forking at Sullivan or Assembly - and you could even extend that to the airport since the tracks go in that direction (and even back across the Blue Line tunnel into Boston). Or instead of forking the Orange Line, it could continue along the Grand Junction Path into Cambridge and to BU. It wouldn't exactly offer a connection to the Green and Red Lines, but it would run very close to Lechmere and Kendall.
I guess the Red-Blue connection has never felt as important to me as so many other wishes. The Green Line comes so frequently between Park and Government Center that it feels easy enough to get from Red to Blue (compared to so many other problems with the T) and I generally don't want the Blue Line, except to go to the airport. I guess of my dreams, a Red-Blue connector just feels like "yay, I guess I can shave 5 minutes off my airport trip now." Sure, that's fine, but I'd be more into projects that really opened up more places.
I've also always used the Blue Line for the airport. The Silver Line always frustrates the hell out of me. I'd rather change at Park, wait a couple minutes for a Green Line train and then change at Government Center for the Blue to take the shuttle than deal with the Silver Line. The Silver Line is so unpredictable. Between traffic and that absolutely awful switch over from electric to diesel, it's just nightmare fuel. Plus, the shuttles at the Blue Line are frequent and usually dedicated to one terminal rather than stopping at every terminal. Sure, if you're going to Terminal A, the Silver Line might be fine. By the time you get to Terminal E, it's annoying. I guess I've just always had good luck with the Blue Line and would rather deal with the transfer at Park than the Silver Line.
Again, I'd love to know if you see the Red-Blue connector differently or more worthwhile. It is slightly inconvenient to get to the Blue Line, but a lot of other places seem more annoying to get to.
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