Charlie Is a Liar: MBTA Cuts Buses, Trains to Save Money

Ever "Written to the Top" to complain to the MBTA that a bus or train you expected never arrived? And maybe, just maybe, they wrote back in apology?

It's likely they did it on purpose, according to a Herald article:

Top MBTA officials acknowledge that for years the agency has been secretly cutting thousands of bus and train trips from published schedules to lower costs - a practice that has left legions of customers waiting for rides that arrived late or not at all.

T General Manager Daniel Grabauskas told the Herald he has moved swiftly to end what he called “hidden service cuts” on bus and subway lines throughout the system. But he said customers have been lied to for years so the T could claim to operate at a level of service it was not delivering. (emphasis ours)

The MBTA can cut its service all it wants and play poormouth as an explanation. But don't ever lie to us. We already know the MBTA is broke, no need to pour salt in the wound.

And, if they are so broke, what were they doing considering T Radio, which was universally reviled upon its debut? Perhaps the MBTA should be blocked from new projects, such as the Green Line extension through Somerville. While the extension would be marvelous, the MBTA needs to get its house in order. And where is the governor on this one?

Grabauskas claims that the lying about buses started before he became General Manager and that he's fixing it, but he's been in the job for two years, and services have been cut over that timespan. Bostonist doesn't condone that slur-filled, hateful letter that a Department of Corrections employee allegedly sent to him, but Grabauskas should brace himself for a flood of complaints after this.

Oh, and another thing while Bostonist is crabby. The Herald ran the story on a Saturday of a three-day weekend. Why would it not run on a weekday to make sure that people were aware of what's going on? Tell your friends that Charlie has been lying to all of us.