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Boston Globe
2 days ago
- General
- Boston Globe
Green Line riders already deal with the slowest speeds. Now service will be less frequent this summer, too.
Advertisement An earlier posting about the service change identified the culprits for the cuts as a temporary decrease in available vehicles, and speed limit changes on the B and C branches. But after inquiries from the Globe, the MBTA clarified there will be no speed changes on any branches and that 'trip time adjustments' were made because train cars will be briefly removed from service as the agency installs Green Line Train Protection System equipment on the vehicle fleet this summer. Schedules on the B and C branches were adjusted to better reflect the actual trip times following an analysis that found trips on those branches 'were encountering minor timing challenges related to street traffic, traffic signals, and other factors,' T spokesperson Lisa Battiston said. Advertisement More than five years ago, transit service was slashed in response to the coronavirus pandemic Sean Keim, 21, a recent graduate of the Boston Conservatory at Berklee, lives right by the Hynes Convention Center and primarily travels on the Green Line. Keim, who dances professionally, said he has gotten stuck on a disabled train on the Green Line for up to a half-hour, unable to go anywhere, more times than he can count. 'I definitely don't think it's back to where it used to be, which is sad, because Boston is known for its public transit. So this decision to slash some of the trains, I definitely don't think is great for quality of life,' he said. With its high number of surface-level stops, the Green Line is notoriously slower than the other subway lines across the system. Speed limits on the line vary by location, from 5 miles per hour around stations, crossings, and curved sections — and up to 40 miles per hour on open, straight stretches, according to the T. Stops on the Green Line are fairly close together, so lower speeds are simply baked in. ( And the extensive track repair work that wrapped up in December didn't do much to alter that, according to an analysis Advertisement In February, the T board of directors approved a Many of the trolleys on the Green Line are decades old and frequently break down, Chris Friend, the treasurer of Transit Matters, called the impending service cuts 'really disappointing.' The Green Line 'struggles to be competitive, and this just makes it worse,' Advertisement Jasmine R., 23, who declined to give her last name because she works for a local government program and is not supposed to speak with the press, said trains running less often during the summer makes her worried for her mom, whose commute from Dorchester to East Boston is taxing and tires her out. 'It's going to be a lot for her,' she said. 'Realistically, it's kind of annoying because we've had all these promises. ... I need my train to come when it has to, so it's a little bit challenging, and I just hope for better.' Meanwhile, service on the Orange Line will improve, partly thanks to better track conditions. And, for the first time in more than a decade, the line will have 17 trains in service, according to T spokesperson Joe Pesaturo. State lawmakers are currently negotiating Justin Holtzman, 43, a physician with a private practice who is also going to law school in the city, takes the Green Line at least three times a week usually late at night, when his classes end. While not thrilled about the service cuts, Holtzman said the system has overall been running more smoothly under Eng. 'We should have a long-term, sustainable plan with funding the T. Obviously, that has to be balanced with everything else that needs to be funded,' he said. 'I guess I'm glad I'm not the one making those decisions.' Shannon Larson can be reached at
Boston Globe
07-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Boston Globe
In Lyric Stage's ‘The Great Reveal,' a cake whose main ingredient is identity
There are no villains in 'The Great Reveal,' just well-intentioned but sometimes tone-deaf people moving haltingly toward some kind of understanding. Valdes is insightful in delineating the ways that unexamined assumptions can cause unintended pain. The play could scarcely be more timely, given how much the gender-identity debate is currently roiling the world of women's sports, not to mention the ominous choices emanating from Washington when it comes to the rights of trans people. Advertisement The word 'Reveal' in the title of Valdes's play is meant to, and does, resonate on more than one level. But Valdes waits too long to let the sparks fly. There's more drift than there should be in a one-act play. The central tension remains on simmer when it needs to be brought to a boil, resulting in a certain shapelessness. 'The Great Reveal' takes place at a gender-reveal party hosted by newlyweds Lexi (Paige Clark), who is seven months pregnant, and her husband, Christopher (Arthur Gomez), on the back deck of their house, which is bedecked with blue and pink balloons. (The scenic design is by Baron E. Pugh.) Antonia Turilli and Jupiter Lê. Mark S. Howard Their guests are Lexi's brother, Linus ( Advertisement Lexi had asked Dosia to bake a cake for the party, and Dosia complied – but the frosting on her finished creation sends a message about her view of the gender-reveal party. The mother-to-be has no difficulty deciphering that message, and is none too happy about it. Dosia and Linus don't see gender as being a cut-and-dried matter, as Lexi appears to. (In a program note, codirector Snow describes gender-reveal parties as 'a trend which chops up gender-identity to the birth-assigned pink and blue binary.') 'The Great Reveal' is not the first time a cake has loomed large, symbolically speaking, in a production at Lyric Stage. Five years ago, Fairly early in the play, 'The Great Reveal' is damaged by what's known in sports as an unforced error. Even granting that Christopher is anxious about whether he's up to the challenges of fatherhood ('What if I don't get any of it right?' he asks plaintively), the playwright's decision to have Christopher get high turns out to be very ill-advised. Gomez has chosen – or has been directed to – deliver an overly broad performance, often bellowing his lines. It knocks the play off-balance. Advertisement Lê's portrayal of Linus has the opposite problem: He's too muted. With Clark, the energy level is never a concern, and she brings her customary avidity and ebullience to her portrayal of Lexi. Turilli, described in the program as a recent graduate of the Boston Conservatory at Berklee, delivers an impressively poised performance. Coming across as a performer who understands the power of stillness, Turilli finds the nuance in a character who seems coolly detached but ultimately proves to be anything but. THE GREAT REVEAL Play by David Valdes. Directed by Bridget Kathleen O'Leary and Charlotte Snow. Presented by Lyric Stage Company of Boston. Through April 27. Tickets $25-$75. 617-585-5678, Don Aucoin can be reached at
