Greater City Providence

…It says it does, but it really doesn’t


Photo (cc) Eric Kilby

So, I’ve been hearing from all around town that MBTA service to T.F. Green starts on Monday. There is even a schedule [.pdf] posted on the MBTA website. So I posted about it.

Then PBN posted about it. Then I got an email from Ted Nesi. Ted tells me that the Governor’s spokeperson said, “no.” Service is not starting on Monday.

Then I email RIDOT for a statement and got this response from Charles St. Martin:

While the entire schedule (for all stops from Providence to Boston) goes into effect on Nov. 22, the service to and from the Airport is not starting on Monday.

So that sounds weird, but what it basically means, is that the new MBTA schedule is out, they change from time to time just as RIPTA’s do, and while the T.F. Green run is listed on this new schedule, the service will not actually start on Monday.

This is all well and good, and I understand that, but check out the schedule the MBTA has posted. All I see is this:

Notes: This schedule is effective from November 22, 2010 and replaces the schedule of January 11, 2010.

And the schedule lists service running to/from T.F. Green. No disclaimer anywhere about that service not being active yet. No asterisk, no notation, no thought-bubble. So you can see the confusion.

I’ve heard from a number of people who were under the impression that the trains were running Monday. I wonder how many people will be on the platform at 6:13am Monday morning waiting for a train.

I did also ask Mr. St. Martin if there was any update on when service actually will start and it is still set to start, “sometime between Thanksgiving and Christmas.”

Update:

The MBTA just updated the Providence line page.

Jef Nickerson

Jef is Greater City Providence's co-founder, editor, and publisher. He grew up on Cape Cod and lived in Boston; Portland, Maine; and New York before settling in Providence. In addition to urbanism, Jef is interested in art, design, and ice cream. Please feel free to contact Jef if you have any question or comments about Greater City Providence.

4 comments

  • The reason the schedule was released is because it was supposed to start that day, in time for Thanksgiving. There has been an unforeseen delay