BOSTON — The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority has lifted its 25-mph speed restriction on the Mattapan Trolley Line, leaving the Green Line as the only transit route still under a blanket speed restriction.
The agency announced the change Thursday on Twitter. The Mattapan Line is still subject to restrictions at specific locations
The MBTA briefly instituted a systemwide 25-mph speed limit on its rail transit lines on March 9, but the next day lifted that restriction on its Red, Orange, and Blue lines [see “MBTA lifts blanket speed restriction …,” Trains News Wire, March 10, 2023]. Still, speed restrictions remain in place for about a third of those three lines.
The slow orders stem from the agency’s inability to document recent track inspections and verify repair work. Interim MBTA General Manager Jeff Gonneville said earlier this week he could not project how long it would take to verify testing results and either validate that repairs had taken place or repair problem areas that had not been addressed [see “MBTA riders told to allow for an extra 40 minute of commute time,” News Wire, March 13, 2023].
Those old trollies in Boston as well as the small fleet of PCC cars in Philadelphia were built in an era when quality and durability were the criteria for transit equipment. Today’s shiny new railcars with all that smart technology built in may look nice and be a hit with today’s generation but how long will this new equipment last? It won’t stand up under harsh weather conditions or the grueling everyday stress and strain of transporting riders back and forth to work, school , shopping and home. If you get at least 20 years out of the new equipment, that is remarkable. These olf trollies have lasted for more than 50 years plus even up to 70 and 80 years. As it is often said They don’t make them like they used to
Joseph C. Markfelder
I live in NM, about 3 hours away from El Paso, TX, where the E.P. has resurrected part of their old international trolley car system, (previously with Mexico) and have been sending their 6 vintage PCC trolleys that were acquired used from San Diego in 1937, to Brookville, PA for restoration and internal technical modernization. One can easily do an online search of the above mentioned.
Thanks very much David Lassen, as being new to the Trains forums, and not having any editing capability, I was very concerned as to what was going on with no immediate results from my posting attempts. So if I understand all this correctly, if I post with a link, we should just be patient for your approval and eventual posting results.
That is correct. I do my best to keep an eye on the site but sometimes there will be a bit of a delay. — David
I’ve always had a warm spot for old time vintage trolleys. As a youngster from the later40s to 1955, I somewhat recall the Atlantic City & Shore double track trolley operation that ran from the north end of the A.C. Inlet, where the carbarn, Hackney’s and Capt Starn’s Seafood restaurants were located along the RoW on Maine Ave., southward via Atlantic Ave down the peninsula to Longport, NJ, that my dad had taken me for a ride., There was a balloon turn around track very close to the ocean at Long Port, and there were also other turn-around loops for shorter trolley trips. Here are Dave’s 115 trolley pix showing all that, and the old connecting interurban operation. I should add, that even back then, the A.C.&S. was an operating museum of a lot vintage trolley cars from many other cities. http://www.newdavesrailpix.com/odds/nj/nj.htm#acs.
Note to Jeffrey (and others): Posts with links require moderator approval as an anti-spam measure. So if you post something with a link and it does not appear immediately, please be patient rather than reposting repeatedly. Thanks.