By Jill Bongiorni, News Staff
The city spoke and the MBTA listened.
As of Monday, the Green Line has been sporting nearly triple the number of three-car trains and has jumped from 13 to 32 trips per weekday on its B, D and E branches. This will be the first time in at least six years that Lechmere Station will house three-car trains and the first time ever that Huntington Avenue will see them on its tracks, according to a Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) press release.
“Boston prides itself on having a quick and reliable transit system, but a lot of the time I find the Green Line to be inefficient because of big crowds and long wait times,” said sophomore pharmacy major Shahista Kassam. “There’s been more than one time that I was asked to wait for the next train because they were at full capacity.”
Kassam is not alone in her frustration.
“As I’ve talked with Green Line customers over the past year, train capacity is an issue that is frequently raised,” MBTA General Manager Richard Davey said in an MBTA press release. “We have received that message loud and clear, and the MBTA is responding.”
To cut down crowds at their worst, four trips have been added to rush hours both in the mornings and early evenings. The trips will be piloted by existing green line operators, so the MBTA will not hire any new personnel, MBTA Spokesperson Joe Pesaturo said.
“In the morning, I want to be comfortable, not shoved around while I’m trying to balance so I don’t fall on someone’s lap,” said sophomore business major Caroline Smith, who rides the green line everyday to and from her co-op at EF Education in Cambridge. “Ideally I would like to listen to my iPod in a seat and relax for those 20 minutes. Hopefully with these new additions I’ll be able to.”
Students who frequently travel to and from Mission Hill are also excited about the change.
“The added service will definitely cut down on how often I take taxis, which I do a lot, because I hate waiting for the trains at night,” said Forrest Peralta, a sophomore business major.
However, some students have still found room for complaints.
“I love how after the winter of a thousand blizzards they’re finally deciding to do this for spring,” said Brittany Russell, a middler majoring in business.
