Boston's trackless trolley-bus service will end on Saturday March 12th

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Fenway

Fenway

Lead Service Attendant
AU Supporting Member
Joined
Feb 25, 2022
Messages
466
Location
Boston, MA
There will still be limited trackless trolley service in the Silver Line tunnel but service on streets will end this weekend.

Trackless trolley service started in Boston in the late 1930s and most routes were converted to diesel buses in the early 60s except for routes using the Harvard Square streetcar tunnel. Streetcar service in Harvard Square ended in 1958 as the then MTA needed the cars for the new Riverside line that opened in 1959.

The current fleet came online in 2004 but fell victim to Cambridge politicians who felt the vehicles made creating bike lines difficult.

The MBTA’s electric trolley-buses, which have glided down the streets of Cambridge and surrounding towns for nearly 90 years, will be permanently disconnected from their overhead wires this weekend and replaced with buses that belch diesel fumes.

The buses, which ply routes between Harvard Square and Watertown and Waverley squares, will be sent to the scrapyard. Taking their place, for about two years, will be diesel hybrid models — which, in turn, will be replaced by battery-powered buses, T officials say.

The decision has frustrated climate and transit advocates, but won the support of some local elected officials. They say the T’s plan to build-out a garage for battery electric buses so they can replace the diesel hybrid ones by 2024 is sensible, and two years of diesel buses replacing electric ones is a small price to pay for progress toward electrifying the MBTA’s whole fleet.

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Fenway said:
There will still be limited trackless trolley service in the Silver Line tunnel but service on streets will end this weekend.

Trackless trolley service started in Boston in the late 1930s and most routes were converted to diesel buses in the early 60s except for routes using the Harvard Square streetcar tunnel. Streetcar service in Harvard Square ended in 1958 as the then MTA needed the cars for the new Riverside line that opened in 1959.

The current fleet came online in 2004 but fell victim to Cambridge politicians who felt the vehicles made creating bike lines difficult.

The MBTA’s electric trolley-buses, which have glided down the streets of Cambridge and surrounding towns for nearly 90 years, will be permanently disconnected from their overhead wires this weekend and replaced with buses that belch diesel fumes.

The buses, which ply routes between Harvard Square and Watertown and Waverley squares, will be sent to the scrapyard. Taking their place, for about two years, will be diesel hybrid models — which, in turn, will be replaced by battery-powered buses, T officials say.

The decision has frustrated climate and transit advocates, but won the support of some local elected officials. They say the T’s plan to build-out a garage for battery electric buses so they can replace the diesel hybrid ones by 2024 is sensible, and two years of diesel buses replacing electric ones is a small price to pay for progress toward electrifying the MBTA’s whole fleet.

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Now it seems that the bike lobby trumps clean transit.
 
Just what the USA needs right now. Here we have an outfit adding to oil consumption. Of course, have no idea how electricity is made for the trolleys.
 
Damn. I just rode the 73 home yesterday, and had no idea at the time it was probably the last time I'll ever ride the trackless trolleys. My state senator, who is usually very sensible, is supporting this wholeheartedly, but it makes no sense at all. They say they want to eventually replace all the diesel buses with electric or hybrid buses. That makes sense, but why replace the most energy-efficient buses FIRST? They should try out the electric or hybrid buses first on one of the diesel routes, where they can easily swap back in diesel buses if there are problems with the new tech. They should replace the trackless trolleys LAST, or at least after a large portion of the diesels have been replaced.

The buses running from overhead wires are inherently more efficient than battery or hybrid buses, since they don't have to lug around heavy batteries with them.

The biggest problem with the trolleys is they can't maneuver around obstructions (stalled vehicles, accidents, big trucks blocking the road, etc.) and can't pass each other. These problems could be easily rectified with a hybrid battery/overhead power system, with a very small battery (sufficient to travel a mile or two) used to propel the bus around obstacles, past other buses or short power gaps. The battery would be recharged the next time the bus was on the wire. Also, this system would be extremely useful at the maintenance yards, where the buses could be parked in areas without overhead wires, backed up easily, etc.

Not long ago, I read about a system that could automatically lower the trolley poles (to go off the external power) and raise them up and automatically re-engage with the wires. Such a system would obviate the need for the driver to get off the bus and do this manually. Of course, my great grandfather would have lost his job on the trolley, but on the other hand, he retired over a century ago.
 
John Santos said:
Not long ago, I read about a system that could automatically lower the trolley poles (to go off the external power) and raise them up and automatically re-engage with the wires. Such a system would obviate the need for the driver to get off the bus and do this manually. Of course, my great grandfather would have lost his job on the trolley, but on the other hand, he retired over a century ago.
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Apparently MBTA has been using this for more than 10 years on the Silver Line. But it has to be done at specific locations where something resembling an elongated funnel has been installed on the overhead to guide the shoe onto the wire. After much searching, I finally found this old YouTube. Looks like the driver has to get off to free up the ropes before raising the poles, but I see no reason why this couldn't be eliminated by devising some sort of remote electric lock on the catcher.

 
John Santos said:
Damn. I just rode the 73 home yesterday, and had no idea at the time it was probably the last time I'll ever ride the trackless trolleys. My state senator, who is usually very sensible, is supporting this wholeheartedly, but it makes no sense at all. They say they want to eventually replace all the diesel buses with electric or hybrid buses. That makes sense, but why replace the most energy-efficient buses FIRST? They should try out the electric or hybrid buses first on one of the diesel routes, where they can easily swap back in diesel buses if there are problems with the new tech. They should replace the trackless trolleys LAST, or at least after a large portion of the diesels have been replaced.
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The reason for the timing of eliminating the TT operation before electric buses are available is that the route is undergoing significant street work which would require removal of the wires so since the long range plan was to go to battery electric the MBTA decided to pull the plug on overhead wire operation now. Also the overhead infrastructure would require significant updates anyway and they figured battery electric was more cost effective.
 
As someone who used to ride the 71 to work (connecting from the Red Line), all I can say is Good Riddance !! The service became so unreliable we would cheer when we saw regular busses being run on the route. There was a long stretch when the 73 route was being handled by busses, and we would often make the trek to take them to avoid the TT on Route 71. When the TT returned to Route 73, it became an incentive to drive to work, even with the hellish drive home (pre COVID traffic).

Watertown Officials tried to keep the TT going, but when we had a employee meeting with Watertown Officials they got an earful from us on we disliked the service. When it was my turn to speak, I used my allotted time to remind the officials from Watertown that if they were so interested in efficient transit, they should never have allowed the A Branch of the Green Line to have been eliminated (and Watertown did not fight it when it first occurred).

Ken
 
The 73 was replaced by buses when Belmont Street and Trapelo Road were being rebuilt, about 7-8 years ago, I think. When they finished the construction, they installed (mostly) brand new poles and (completely) brand new overhead wiring west from the Mt Auburn Street split (where 73 splits off from 71. More recently, they rebuilt Huron Ave and replaced the poles and wires for the 72, at least on the Huron Ave and Aberdeen Ave sections. (The 72 follows a different route west from Harvard Square, but meets up with the 71/73 at the intersection of Mt Auburn Street and the end of Aberdeen Ave.)

So at least 50% of the TT infrastructure is less than 10 years old.
 
Ken, I used to live in Watertown, directly across the river from the Trolley repair yard. Lots of loud banging and hammering 24x7, especially bad at night in the summer with the windows open. I wouldn't have minded much if the trolleys were still running for passenger service, but they shut that down about 10 years previously. (I moved there in 1986.) I think it was because the streets were really too narrow with no separate lane for the trolleys. Most of the Green Line (trolley service) runs in tunnels, in a wide median, or on dedicated ROW. I think the Watertown branch was the only route that ran mostly on the shared streets. Technically, the last stretch (Galen St) is 4 lanes, but the lanes are extremely narrow, and it is usually impossible to pass a truck unless there is no oncoming traffic and you straddle the double yellow line to do so. Trolleys were constantly getting stuck in traffic and causing traffic jams. Widening the street would have been impossible, but they could have banned on-street parking. Instead, they shut down the trolley service and replaced it with buses. (They continued to use the tracks at night to access the maintenance yard for another 10-15 years, though.)
 
Having grown up in Cambridge the trackless trollies were a part of city life.

I do remember the streetcars that were phased out in 1958 and most TT lines in Cambridge vanished by 1963 except the lines that used the Harvard Sq tunnel.

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A simpler time

 
The 71 from Watertown was supposed to be the final trip but in a classic irony the 73's last trip was delayed as the pole got disconnected and the fan trip people adjusted

 
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Another short sighted move by the MBTA.

It’s super sad. Like others, they buses were apart of my life, and while they were not the bus I road home (I took the 74 or the 78), they were always so cool to see.

It is so hard to be an advocate, especially when the group you advocate for does things that are so blind and stupid, like getting rid of all electric trolley buses in a gas shortage...
 
Look, I'm all in favor of bike lanes, but, in reality, the number of people who use them year around are much less than those riding those "trackless trolleys". All in favor of electric busses, but why make the residents of Cambridge inhale all those fumes for at least two years. Stupid move.
 
JWM said:
Look, I'm all in favor of bike lanes, but, in reality, the number of people who use them year around are much less than those riding those "trackless trolleys". All in favor of electric busses, but why make the residents of Cambridge inhale all those fumes for at least two years. Stupid move.
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Moreover, the “electric bus” replacements are actually just the usual hybrid buses they use on all of the routes, at least for the time being.
 
Well, bummer, but if it goes battery electric that may be a better solution. We lived in Waverly Square at the end of the 73 line for years, so we used that bus a lot. Another end of an era.
 

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