This comment brings up a reasonable question... Why can't Lincoln and other towns band together to demand that *before* any radical zoning changes take place the MBTA must get its act together? The HCA is based on public transportation, and it's on the MBTA to provide that; affordable, reliable transportation to complete the mission of reducing auto traffic. As it stands now, the Commonwealth is making demands on many communities, altering these towns which have been shaped over decades by local voters.
The HCA is a heavy handed, centralized, trickle down method for improving housing opportunities, yet it jeopardizes communities without providing the critical element for success- reliable transportation. Why aren't we asking for the state to hold up its part of the bargain? Gail On Sun, Oct 29, 2023 at 3:09 PM Rachel Shulman <[email protected]> wrote: > For what it's worth, until our move this week, I lived a 2 minute walk > from the Commuter Rail station, but I found that the train didn't run often > enough to be helpful to me (I work in Cambridge). I've taken the train a > few times when using my car wasn't a choice and it was miserable. Based on > reports from friends, it is also not reliable enough for me to plan to take > it when, say, I have to be on campus on time to teach - there's no wiggle > room on that one. Finally, I need to take the Red Line a few stops, and it, > too, has not been reliable enough to count on. And, personally, I find the > noise of the train and the T overwhelming and incredibly stress-inducing. > This doesn't even take into account the cost - even with a heavily > subsidized pass, I wouldn't save enough money on a per-trip basis to induce > me to stop driving. Since early 2017, I have worked in climate education, > with the goal of fighting the climate crisis, and even I can't bring myself > to use public transport anymore. My goal now is to budget wisely enough to > be able to buy an electric vehicle in the next few years - I can't even > wrap my head around how much would have to change to get me back to taking > public transport on a regular basis (before the pandemic I lived in > Arlington and ONLY used the bus/T to get to work. Even then the noise and > the crowds were awful, but given that my T-pass was free, I couldn't > justify EVER driving to campus.) > > Building more housing by the train station (or in other parts of Lincoln) > is, in my own opinion, truly necessary for a host of reasons, but for it to > really work, we need to figure out how to get our elected officials to make > the train easier to use - it needs to run more often, more reliably, at a > more affordable rate, and, for me, at least, it needs to be quieter. > Without serious improvements to our public transport infrastructure, > building more housing only solves one part of the issue (the stupidly tight > housing market) without considering the larger structures in which that > housing is situated. > > Just my $0.02. :) > > Best, > Rachel > > On Sun, Oct 29, 2023 at 1:54 PM Marjorie Dashef <[email protected]> > wrote: > >> With all the talk about the commuter rail and HCA I would like to add >> that I cannot use the commuter rail because the east direction dies not >> have a platform to step into. It is not ADA complaint. I used the rail >> when much younger but at 4'10" stepping off it is not safe for me. Last >> trip to sister (when car was not working) in Charlestown was done via Uber. >> -- >> The LincolnTalk mailing list. >> To post, send mail to [email protected]. >> Browse the archives at >> https://pairlist9.pair.net/mailman/private/lincoln/. >> Change your subscription settings at >> https://pairlist9.pair.net/mailman/listinfo/lincoln. >> >> -- > The LincolnTalk mailing list. > To post, send mail to [email protected]. > Browse the archives at https://pairlist9.pair.net/mailman/private/lincoln/ > . > Change your subscription settings at > https://pairlist9.pair.net/mailman/listinfo/lincoln. > >
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