Monthly pass information for February (correction)

Updating a previous post that had some misleading info and we appreciate the corrected information.

1. The Government Center pass sales office has been closed since the beginning of December.

2. The only passes sold (or loaded onto) on CharlieCards at Downtown Crossing, Harvard, Back Bay, North Station and South Station are Local Bus and LinkPasses. Same goes for the vending machines.

3. Both Express Bus passes, all Commuter Rail zone passes, and Commuter Boat passes will still be issued on CharlieTickets, whether you get them at a store, a pass office or a vending machine.

4. Customers who ride Zone 1A, their LinkPass MUST be issued on a CharlieTicket. There is no change in this from last month. This is an important point since most customers who buy passes at these pass offices are commuter rail riders.

5. The only customers who need to use the ticket windows listed above are those who get "transit checks" or "commuter checks" from their employer. Everyone else can get ANY pass (monthly or 1 or 7 day) from ANY vending machine throughout the system. There is no need to stand in line at these ticket offices if you are paying with cash or debit/credit card.

T in the media (January 26th)

Mac Daniel in the Globe looks at the blacksmiths of the T's Everett Repair Facility

The Globe's Tom Long has a couple of T related items in the Northwest Edition of Stops and Starts.



T holding off on credit cards

A reader who identified himself only as Nate asked about the future of credit card use on the T."Is there any planning for such use? It seems like for those with credit cards [which frequently include tourists, and many locals], it would streamline the process of using the T by not needing to get an additional card -- just swipe what you already have and hop on," he wrote in an e-mail. "If so, do you know when it will go live? If not, do you have any insight on why a decision was reached to not include such a universal payment system in the T's plans?"

MBTA spokesman Joe Pesaturo said that is something the T will definitely be exploring down the road, but the immediate focus is on the transition to the Charlie Card system. "For the first time in decades, public transit fares in Greater Boston are being purchased and collected in a different manner," he said. "We feel it is very important for customers to become comfortable with this new type of technology before introducing another method."

Also Pesaturo explains why Charlie doesn't work in Winthrop

Pesaturo said the Winthrop run is not one of the MBTA's 175 bus routes. It's a private carrier bus route operated by Paul Revere Transportation. It is a popular route served by new buses that were introduced last fall."Because the service provides an important connection to the subway system [at Orient Heights], the MBTA provides financial assistance to the private operator," he said. MBTA passes are not accepted for this service. However, the fare on the Winthrop bus was set at 90 cents, which is lower than the $1.25 bus fare on MBTA-operated bus routes, to make the overall cost more equitable for customers making a connection at Orient Heights.

The Patriot Ledger looks at increased ferry ridership from Quincy and Hull

Bill Gouveia in the Easton News looks to increase safety at Commuter Rail stations

Bostonist looks at signs or lack of them along the Green Line.

Peter Pan Bus Lines tries the Fung Wah approach as they are now running buses from Providence to Boston that are cheaper that the $7.75 T Commuter Rail fare trying to attract college students in the area reports The Brown Daily News.

A Medford resident writes the Medford Transcript saying how the Green Line would be a bad idea.