Passengers on Green Line and Blue Line trains will have access to cell phone service by the end of the month, Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority officials said.
The T’s work at installing underground cell phone towers is nearly complete, said MBTA spokesperson Lydia Rivera in an email interview.
The Green Lines to Kenmore station and Blue Line are ready for service, she said, with the exception of the E Line’s Prudential and Symphony stations.
In 2012, riders at the E Line’s Prudential and Symphony stations, along with those on the Red Line, from Kendall to Alewife and Shawmut and Ashmont, will have service she said.
The recent proposal to extend MBTA service hours on weekend nights, however, is not possible with the T’s budget shortcomings, Rivera said.
“The MBTA appreciates the suggestion,” she said, “but the T simply can’t afford to operate trains for longer periods of time right now.”
Beyond the deficit, Rivera said crews perform critical track and maintenance work during the overnight hours, which could be shortened by the proposed additional service hours.
“Acting MBTA General Manager Jonathan Davis reiterated his concerns over the cost of such a proposal,” Rivera said, “and the potential impact on maintenance activity.”
Service extensions to 2 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, as State Rep. Sean Garballey and Dave Andelman, president of the Restaurant and Business Alliance, proposed on Tuesday, are unlikely for now.
“The MBTA is always open to suggestions aimed at improving public transit, but with a projected budget deficit of $161 million next year, the T is not in a position to add more service at this time,” Rivera said.
Late-night weekend service is not new to the MBTA. “Night Owl Service” buses and subways used to run until 2:30 a.m. on Fridays and Saturdays, but discontinued in 2005.
“[It] was very expensive to operate and did not attract nearly enough ridership to support it,” Rivera said.
The possibility of service cuts and fare increases is still unknown, Rivera said, as “work on the package continues.”
Vidhi Kumar, a Boston University School of Management senior, said it is surprising it took this long for a fare increase to appear.
“I’m from New York, and we just had a fare increase,” Kumar said. “I can’t believe that they haven’t already done it here.”
Kumar said she was unsure if potential service cuts would be the right decision to make.
“The Green Line service is already bad, so it sucks [if] they are cutting service,” she said. “I don’t think this is something they can afford to do.”
Kumar said she has taken public transit less this semester, and will continue to do so if service is cut further.
“I usually take the [Boston University Shuttle] to Kenmore where I have more options for transit that is more reliable,” she said. “I’ll take more cabs if they decrease service further.”
For those taking transit above ground during the winter months, the MBTA rolled out “a new approach to severe winter weather,” according to a recently launched website, mbta.com/winter.
Riders will use the site as their “source for information on the MBTA’s service during winter,” according to the website, with listings of bus and subway snow routes and service alerts showing delays and reduced service.
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