Steve Carlson (Hanson) on ice by Lorianne DiSabato BC student regained consciousness on Sunday after being hit by a Green Line train last week. [Allston Brighton TAB] A jackknifed semi caused a traffic nightmare today, sending fear into the hearts of all who are driving home tomorrow. (Maybe try Fung Wah? At least you can sleep in traffic then. Just hope your driver doesn't follow suit.) [Herald] Sex is good for married people, but......

Two Green Line drivers who hit things—in one case a train car, in another a person—over the past week tested positive for drugs and alcohol. The driver in Friday's crash had cocaine in his system, while the man operating a rear car in Monday's incident had a blood alcohol level of more than the MBTA limit of .02 but less than .08. The drivers have been suspended without pay until they can be fired. An......

Continuing the tradition started last Friday, the Green Line was again slow taking folks to work. A disabled train at Arlington caused 25-30 minute delays for commuters this morning, and the issue does not appear to have been resolved. Our inbound Green Line commute wasn't too bad, but many of our coworkers are trickling in late. Did anyone else have problems on the Green Line this morning?......

Only one bar missed the sprinkler deadline and had to close on Saturday. It's surrounded by water on a pier. [Boston Globe] Despite the T's new courtesy campaign, a green line trolley hit a BC student this morning. [eFluxMedia] Is our children graduating? Most of Boston's high school class of '00 who went to college don't have degrees. [Boston Globe] A soldier from Mansfield was one of two killed by an Iraqi soldier last......

Deval Patrick wrote an op-ed in the Globe yesterday about reforming Massachusetts transportation. He advocated consolidation and system-wide planning, and emphasized multi-modal transportation. Proposing an elimination of the Turnpike Authority, Patrick outlined a plan to turn over roads that go to Logan and the South Boston Seaport (including Mass Pike east of route 128) to Massport, while the Highway Department would take over the turnpike west of 128. Tolls will be eliminated on the western......

Two MBTA trains collided at Boylston this morning. The "minor" accident (according to the MBTA) caused major transportation delays throughout the Green Line. Seven individuals on the cars that collided were taken to local hospitals, but no serious injuries have been reported. The trains were not derailed. Non-injured passengers got to walk through the subway tunnel to the Boylston station, which was shut down along with some surrounding stations. The MBTA alert advises that bus......

Not ever as real as realized by Lorianne DiSabato Local veterans were honored on Veterans Day. [Globe] The Intrepid Sea, Air & Space Museum was formally rededicated in Manhattan, and veterans of the USS Intrepid were recognized. [NYT] President-elect Barack Obama rememebered veterans in Chicago. [Herald] Tom Brady entered "knee-hab." [Track Girls] Or did he? [WCVB] MBTA employees despise the lavish catered lunches they receive, while we enjoy watching five D trains pass by......

-- "If you really want to test the strength of your foot bone you need to lodge it under a bus for some measure of time." Yikes! [Boston Biker] -- A hipster shantytown popped up on Newbury Street: Latest sign of our troubled economic times or Johnny Cupcakes Halloween t-shirt release? [That Hotness | Boston Lifestyle Blog] -- Looking to make a little extra cash to keep you out of the Hipster Hooverville? Charlestown residents......

The MBTA officials must really be dreaming. Besides implementing a fantastical $1.2 billion "Little Dig" project, our public transportation system is also trying to get Bostonians to be nice. Say what now? Yes, it's true--the T thinks some adorable little signs will help us nasty Boston folk learn to ride the rails in a way that doesn't ruin everyone's day. Unfortunately, the MBTA marketing masterminds seem to have forgotten the #1 rule of public transportation:......

Remember the Silver Line? The world's fanciest and most often maligned bus routes will finally be joined by the world's most expensive tunnel if the MBTA has its way. The "Little Dig" (or, more formally, "Silver Line Phase III") will cost more than $1.2 billion, take more than five years to complete, and quite possibly cause the entire Bay Village neighborhood to slide below the Earth's crust. The completely broke MBTA has no plan to......

-- Underage drinking and marijuana consumption occurred at college parties. You don't say. [BPDNews] -- And high school students bought a lot of liquor. [WCVB] -- A Lowell pizza joint became a "slaughterhouse" when a man was beaten to death there over the weekend. A suspect has been arrested. [Herald, WBZTV] -- Pervs are on the run. Arrests for subway sexual assault have doubled compared to the same time last year since the transit police......

Homelessness in Massachusetts is at an all-time high, and the future doesn't look bright. [Boston Globe] Even the state government is having trouble making ends meet and has requested funding assistance from the feds. [WBZ] The campaign to catch gropers on the T is leading to more arrests and more victims reporting assaults. [Boston Herald] After a robbery acquittal, a man is trying his hand at ripping off the state legally. [Boston Globe] A......

We covered the launch of BusRyda, which provides mobile MBTA info, last week. The service has already expanded to include a Trip Planner that will help you find out how to get from one particular place to another. Designed with the iPhone in mind, BusRyda also works on other mobile phones. Bostonist talked to BusRyda founder Eric D. Fields, who has a closer connection with DMX than you might think. Read on to learn how......

Massachusetts forced everyone to have health insurance. Now it takes longer to see a doctor, and there are fewer practices accepting new patients. Ah, success. [Boston Globe] Microsoft opened a new research facility in Cambridge. Perhaps they'll eventually get "Obama" into Word's spell-check. [Mass High Tech] The Department of Homeland Security has nixed MBTA plans to expand chemical attack sensors because the existing system is effective enough for them. [Boston Globe] As usual, people......

Bobby Mendes trial begins. [Herald] Star Simpson speaks out! [Boing Boing] Norman Rockwell's "Runaway" will celebrate its 50th anniversary tomorrow. Two local folks were the models for the iconic image. [Globe] Air Force to cleanup water contaminated by military base. [Herald] Oh, what will the Harvard kids pick for careers now? [NYT] The MBTA makes everyone mad, not just us. [Herald] 50% of Massachusetts schools need improvement. [Globe] k a t m caught a......

Knowing when your bus is scheduled to come doesn't always help, as many routes are all too often hopelessly off the mark. Just this Sunday evening we saw two #1 buses tailgating each other around Harvard, from where they were supposed to leave 20 minutes apart. Sigh. But for those of you who retain hope that buses may occasionally arrive when they're intended to, the new service BusRyda has come up with easy mobile alerts......

As of today, there will be more room for riders on the Blue Line. [Boston Globe] The Storrow Drive Tunnel will be closed every night until next Monday. This might become a regular occurrence to complete repairs. [WHDH] The number of Boston-based Lehman Brothers employees is unknown (approx. 28,000 worldwide), but some rushed to clear out their desks last night. [Boston Globe] And we don't know how many Bostonians will be out of a......

-- Elvia McField, 56, was found stabbed to death in her home on Amory St., near the boundary between Roxbury and Jamaica Plain. Police arrested 66-year-old Charles Cherry and charged him with the murder. [WCVB; BPDNews] -- A 25-year-old woman was raped at gunpoint at the Back Bay Orange Line station yesterday evening, and police have arrested a 48-year-old parolee for committing the crime. The woman was approached by her assailant while on the subway......

Nomar and NKOTB are among the celebrities that are owed money by the Commonwealth. [Boston Globe] The state official who was caught on video while stealing from copying machines has resigned to "spend more time with his family." [Cambridge Chronicle] Tonight is the first of 11 public meetings where citizens can comment on the MBTA's newly proposed service changes, which mainly affect bus and ferry lines. [Boston Herald] A debate between John Kerry and......

primefocus caught this funhouse mirror effect Hannah Montana Midatlantic is poised to give us the best of both worlds with lots of rain and wind. [Globe] And it's enough to make Jimmy Buffett move up his concert time. [Globe] Everyone wants a T stop, but not a T maintenance facility. [Somerville News] Protesters attempt to stall Roxbury woman's eviction. [Herald] Big trucks can now get out of Boston into Cambridge over the Longfellow. [WBZTV]......

Although Drivin' Dan G. says they can't afford it, MBTA will address the increased train and bus usage. [Boston Globe] Former Gov. Romney gives a mind-boggling speech at the Republican Convention, including saying Democrats are the "party of Big Brother." [Vox Politics, NPR] A Gloucester teen mom throws her support to Bristol Palin's mom and the old dude. [Boston Herald] After Great White has agreed to pay $1 million to survivors and relatives, the......

The American Public Transit Association (APTA) has ranked Boston first on its most recent list of cities where you can save money by taking public transportation. (We beat NYC by $5 per month--that'll buy a Guinness!) The APTA compiles the list regularly, based on the cost of a monthly transit pass, local parking prices, current gas prices (in this study, $3.678 per gallon, assuming an average 23.4 mpg and 15,000 miles of driving per year),......

-- Who needs MIT hackers when the MBTA Charlie system can fail on it's own? [Zeroday] -- World-record-breaking attempt or largest scale chain mail scam of all time? Send your business card to this Somerville teen and find out! [Wicked Local Blog] -- Gov. Patrick sat down at the keyboard in Denver for about 40 minutes of live-blogging to answer questions. [Blue Mass Group] -- Abraham Lincoln's version of the afterlife involves riding a......

In a revolutionary development for the MBTA, the organization has decided that it might be nice to tell commuters when trains are arriving. As we all know, some stations already have announcements like "The next Red Line train to Alewife is now approaching," but those announcements usually occur at about the time you can either see or feel the train on its way. It would be nice to know whether your wait will be 5......

-- When you're not getting your news from Bostonist, NewsCred might offer the best articles available on the Web. [Blogstring] -- Apparently the T has set up a radar gun to monitor the Green Line speed at Packard's Corner. Lo and behold, someone caught the trolley going almost twice the speed limit. [Universal Hub] -- Someone at the Smithsonian wonders which museum is better: the MFA or the the Brooklyn Museum of Art. She's......

Our favorite bodybuilding, back-aching ex-firefighter appeared on the radio to make his first public statements. Albert Arroyo wishes that other jakes—the ones who show up to work everyday—would be more sympathetic to his plight. [Boston Globe] MBTA employees complain about new federal regulations that require the monitoring of urine tests to detect drug use, in effect saying, "I can't cheat if you're looking." [The Boston Channel] Blame Canada! Our northern neighbors are considering a......

Remember that 9% raise the MBTA gave to its top brass but couldn't figure out how to pay for? Well, now it doesn't have to. After Transportation Secretary Bernard Cohen asked T general manager Dan Grabauskas "WTF?", Grabauskas rescinded the pay increase for the T's highest paid employees. Non-union administrators making less than $70,000 will still see a boost in pay.......

Bostonist received the following email alert from the MBTA today: An MBTA Fare Collection Agent was arrested this morning by Transit Police for allegedly stealing fare revenue. 43-year old Gilberto Carrasquillo of Dorchester is a Senior Revenue Collection Agent, who has been working at the MBTA for more than 22 years. Acting on information from the director of security for the MBTA's Money Room, Transit Police launched an investigation into the possibility that cash was......

The MBTA management has done such a good job avoiding bankruptcy, fare hikes, crashes, fires, hackers, and, of course, riding the T themselves, that they are getting a 9% raise, reports the Globe. General manager Dan Grabauskas and will not be getting a raise, but he is the party who authorized the increase for the T's executives, who currently make an average $83,650.......

Sweet snap of the State House by apdonovan A crane collapsed in Quincy, killing a worker. [Herald] No-show fake-back-problem body-building ex-firefighter wants his job back. [WBZTV] New technology: bacon bomb. [Gizmodo] So the MBTA got the law to force the students who hacked its system to reveal how they did it. Which is pretty much exactly what the students initially wanted to do, but the MBTA turned them away. Nice work. [Globe] While officials......