HONK. The T's Northeastern Station about a hundred feet from my dorm. It's past eleven and I'm trying to go to sleep. The horn is not helping.
When I walk to class in the morning, I cross Huntington Ave. Right in the center are two sets of tracks for the Green Line. When crossing the street, I not only look out for cars, but also for trains.
When I go back to my dorm after classes, I tiptoe back over two sets of rails, making sure the train is far enough away. Living in Boston has made me aware of the omnipresence of the T. Here and there I see tracks and signs.
The T surrounds me.
In the winter of 2015, due to heavy snowfall and aging infrastructure, the T failed. Throughout the snowy season, delays, overpacked trains, and mechanical failures were common. The T even shut down completely on two occasions to clear away snow and make sure everything worked properly. There were reports of train doors freezing open, exposing the passengers to the elements.
Needless to say, the public outcry was immense. Beverly Scott, the general manager of the MBTA at the time, as well as other MBTA officials, resigned in light of these issues. Keolis, the company that the MBTA hires to run the commuter rail, also replaced many of their top officials.
But this wasn't just a failure on the part of the management at the time. It was also a symptom of budget problems that stretched back decades.
There are many strains on the T's budget. Click on the menu items to read more.
The MBTA has over 9 billion dollars of debt.
This debt built up over time in a few different ways. For one, it is normal for organizations like the MBTA to take on debt to finance projects, just like people rely on mortgages to afford their houses. The MBTA also continually runs a deficit. Its operating costs are vastly higher than its operating revenue (that is, the money it gets from fares). The MBTA receives additional funding from other sources such as the Massachusetts government. However, when these don't cover the deficit, the MBTA needs to take on more debt.
In his report "Born Broke," analyst Brian Kane talks about another cause of the MBTA's enormous debt. When the state passed a Forward Funding law in 2000, it changed how the MBTA was to be funded. Part of the law transferred 3.3 billion dollars of commonwealth debt to the MBTA, much of it from the Big Dig.
Having this much debt puts a strain on the MBTA's budget because it has to pay interest on the debt. For example, in 2016, the MBTA spent approximately 267 million dollars in interest expense.
In 2015, the MBTA reported a backlog of 7.3 billion dollars' worth of repairs. As the system ages, repairs pile up. The MBTA has also been consistently underspending on repairs for the past decade or so. This has the potential to become a "stitch in time saves nine" situation, where a component left in disrepair ends up costing more than fixing it early.
Another factor is that in recent years, the MBTA has begun to better catalogue its assets. This means that the figures presented are more accurate and comprehensive than repair estimates given in previous years. Officials note that the repair backlog may yet continue to grow.
Many other transit agencies such as the New York City Subway have similar problems with backlog.
Note that even though many repairs are necessary, the T is still safe to ride.
A surprisingly large cost that the MBTA has to shoulder is its pensions. T employees are given a pension upon retirement. However, there are more retirees—almost a thousand more—collecting from the fund than there are members paying into the fund. Additionally, due to bad investments around the time of the 2008 financial crisis, the pension fund lost critical capital. Because this is a private trust, the specifics of these investments are not available.
The amount of money that the MBTA puts toward its pensions has ballooned from 20 million dollars in 2006 to over 1.1 billion dollars in 2016. In total, the MBTA and the taxpayers pay 73% of the pensions. The MBTA does not have the resources to keep supplying these pensions. They are asking for a one billion dollar bailout for the pension fund to stay solvent.
Needless to say, the T faces many issues without obvious solutions.
As is often said, you cannot know the value of something until you lose it.
I tried to imagine my life without the T. Yes, perhaps I would have gotten a little more sleep. Perhaps there would be one less thing to watch out for when crossing Huntington Ave. And perhaps the people I pass on the street would have an extra few dollars in there pockets that they would otherwise be paying in taxes.
But how would I get to South Station to ride the train back to New York? When I return to South Station from New York, how would I get back to the university? I guess I could take a taxi cab.
It's not so simple. Reports estimate that deep budget cuts for T could easily lead to 92,000 more cars on the road daily. Image the congestion throughout the city. I could be waiting in traffic for hours.
Not just me, but also workers. Instead of being in the office, many employees will be stuck in their commute. In fact, according to the Texas Transportation Institute, a lack of public transportation would cost the Greater Boston area 663 million dollars per year. Keep in mind that a well-working system of public transportation is especially vital for many low-income workers to commute to their jobs.
Additionally, an estimated 55% of business trips into Boston use the T. Without the T, companies from outside of Boston may have fewer interactions with Boston. This would lead to great economic downturn both in Boston and surrounding areas.
The T has a far-reaching impact on many parts of Boston's economy. In is not an exaggeration to say that not having the T would cause widespread economic collapse.
Public transportation is so often taken for granted. It is something so basic. It allows us to move around, get to our jobs, see our friends and families. But don't just focus on where the transportation leads. Focus also on the journey. The journey is frought with difficulty. Budgets, pensions. Disrepair. These are issues that need to be addressed. And as Bostoners we should work to repair and revitalize the T however we can.
But large-scale budget cuts are not the answer. Cuts would mean less repair and less service. And that goes agains all of the prosperity that the T provides.
Never forget the importance of the T.
Looking out of my window, I see the green line saunter along the track. The little train brings a smile to my face. In many ways, the T is the glue that holds Boston together. It is so valuable.