Is the MBTA Ready for Winter?

It turns out two out of five trains didn’t show up on time last month

If you ride the MBTA Worcester Line, you’re one of 16,000 commuters who stood in the cold and waited for a late train. 

It turns out that two out of five trains didn’t show up on time last month. 

"You'd get down here and you have no idea if it's going to be here in five minutes or an hour," commuter Laura Garabedian said. "I mean, I’m not kidding - sometimes it was over an hour!" 

The big question remains - is the MBTA ready for winter and even bigger delays? In November alone, fewer than half of the Worcester trains showed up on time for the morning commute. 

“I ride the Worcester line and I know we have to do better for our customers,” MBTA General Manager Brian Shortsleeve said. 

The MBTA spent $100 million over the last two years replacing third-rail heaters and ties on the Red and Orange lines, adding 300 gallons of de-icing fluid, which Shortsleeve said “runs up and down the rails to make sure the rails and third rails are free of ice and snow.” 

"We have over 200 pieces of equipment for winter time between the commuter rail and the subway system," he added. 

"Snowzilla" is also equipped to move 3,000 tons of snow off the tracks. 

The MBTA hopes to have winter preparations done by Christmas. 

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