New Hope for Commuters?

I'm no longer commuting from the Burg to Boston everyday, and while I giggle pretty much daily at the thought, I still have empathy for the folks who grind it out on Route 2 and the commuter rail every day.

So, for those who still make the trip, potentially some good news: The MBTA is buying new coaches and some engines in an effort to improve the commuter rail, um, experience.

As commuters well know, the Fitchburg line isn't exactly the Orient Express. The cars aren't dirty (usually), but they aren't shiny, either. They're kind of tired. You can't look out the windows half the time. They can be crowded as hell. In the summer, the AC seems to broken in at least one car almost every day, and in the winter it can be pretty cold on the too-regular occassions the heat isn't on.

In short: The line desperately needs an upgrade.

According to a group in the story, commuter rail service overall is up 3.4 percent the first nine months of 2006 from the same time in 2005.

As long as we can remember, the constant challenge of the T -- not just commuter rail, but subway, bus and all the rest -- has been to get people on board, and make sure the experience is good enough that riders come back. The goal is to make the occassional rider a full-time rider. But the problem has always been the spotty service turns off the part-timers. Let's say, for example, someone knows it's going to snow like holy hell, so he hops on the train instead of skating on the roads. But the heat doesn't work. Does that person come back on the next sunny day? Unlikely.

The MBTA has a long way to go on commuter rail and the rest of its system, and it's seriously cash-strapped. But hopefully new or "lightly" used equipment gets put on the Fitchburg line, which could desperately use an upgrade.