2/5 J. F. I. 4 months ago on Google
If
you
had
to
pick
a
single
MBTA
station
to
exemplify
the
numerous
shortcomings
both
on
the
state
and
local
level
to
provide
adequate
transportation
needs
to
the
public,
few
stations
would
fit
the
overall
portfolio
than
QC.
Let's
work
our
way
from
least-worst
to
worst-worst,
beginning
with
one
bright
spot:
Taxis:
Taxis
may
be
the
only
bright
spot
as
a
mode
of
transport.
You
can
pretty
much
guarantee
that,
as
you
alight
from
the
Red
Line
and/or
Commuter
Rail,
there
will
be
at
least
1-3
cabs
parked,
ready
to
whisk
you
to
other
points
around
Quincy/Weymouth/Braintree.
Parking:
Beginning
with
the
least-worst,
we
look
at
the
parking
situation.
While
not
the
most
favorable
amenity
to
urbanists,
park-and-ride
SHOULD
be
included
as
part
of
the
fabric
of
any
suburban
station,
to
help
solve
the
"last
mile"
issues
not
adequately
compensated
for
by
any
other
means
of
travel.
There
is
a
small
but
condemned
garage
sitting
atop
the
Red
Line
platform,
behind
the
main
busway,
plus
another
decrepit
looking,
but
semi-functional
garage
just
south
of
the
station--off
limits
to
all
but
certain
municipal
employees
and
Stop
&
Shop
administrative
workers.
Still
the
alternative,
as
many
urbanists
cheer,
is
the
myriad
transit-oriented-development
(TOD)--which
is
great
if
you're
wealthy
enough
to
live
within
walking
distance
of
the
station
from
the
new
luxury
condos
and
apartments
nearby.
Cycling:
Next,
we
look
at
cycling
as
the
second-least-worst.
The
bike
infrastructure
is
abysmal
at
best,
with
no
covered
OR
locked
storage
for
such
a
large,
busy
station,
and
the
available
rack
options
being
either
a
rack
situated
in
the
dirt
of
a
large
planter
across
from
the
main
entrance
of
the
station
or
another
rack
that--no
kidding--is
anchored
to
the
left
side
of
the
same
planter,
so
close
to
the
planter
that
you
can't
even
properly
park
your
bike's
front
wheel.
Thanks
to
Quincy's
do-nothing
Mayor
Tom
Koch,
Quincy
also
has
the
infamous
title
of
largest
city-suburb
of
Boston
with
ZERO
connection
to
the
Blue
Bikes
network.
At
least
you
can
take
bikes
on
the
Red
Line
and
Commuter
Rail
most
of
the
day.
Walking/Mobility
Use:
The
biggest
issue
with
walking
and
mobility
use
at
QC
is
that
it
suffers
from
the
same
one-way-in-one-way-out
design
that
plagues
much
of
the
Red
Line
expansions
and
Orange
Line
realignments
of
the
1970s
and
1980s,
respectively.
It's
not
like
there's
NO
room
to
add
a
second
entrance/egress
at
the
north
end
of
the
station,
with
fare
gate
access
potentially
where
the
aforementioned
condemned
garage
lot
sits
and
direct
access
from
the
main
busway
as
well
as
secondary
busway
off
Burgin
Pkwy.
Red
Line:
So,
now
we're
down
to
the
three
worst
of
the
worst,
beginning
with
the
least-worst,
the
Red
Line.
You'd
think
it
would
be
higher,
but
service,
while
abysmal,
still
bests
the
buses
and
Commuter
Rail
services
in
terms
of
hours
of
operation
and
frequency.
A
word
of
caution
though:
as
sleepy
as
Quincy
is,
bar/restaurants
DO
stay
open
until
1:00
am,
but
the
last
inbound
train
is
at
12:16-sharp!
Buses:
Quincy
Area
bus
services
boast
frequencies
of
30-45
minutes,
FAR
beyond
the
10-15-minute
window
urbanists
agree
makes
bus
ridership
attractive
and
feasible--and
that's
WHEN
there
aren't
the
myriad
bus
breakdowns
or
traffic
delays
pushing
wait
times
AN
EXTRA
25-35
minutes!
Again,
we
look
to
do-nothing
Mayor
Koch
who,
unlike
the
Progressive
Mayors
in
Boston,
Cambridge,
Everett
and
Malden,
refuses
to
implement
bus
lanes
to
speed
up
bus
service.
Lastly,
the
last
three
outbound
Red
Line
trains
don't
connect
to
any
buses
except
the
216
(which
goes
to
the
rich
neighborhood
*shocker*).
Hence,
a
lot
of
walking
or
taking
cabs,
as
mentioned.
Commuter
Rail:
Why
is
Commuter
Rail
the
worst
of
the
worst?
Costs
about
200%
more
than
the
subway
fare
to
go,
on
average,
40%
faster--that's
the
easiest
example
of
a
"Poor
Tax"
ever.
Abysmal
frequencies
outside
of
rush
hour:
three
trains
in/out
of
the
city
10-15
minutes
apart
and
then
no
service
for
over
1:15.
Single-track
bottlenecks
that
should've
been
addressed
over
25
YEARS
ago,
including
at
QC
and
JFK/UMass.
