Forgot to write this one on Monday, but it's still as pertinent today as it was yesterday.
The Bostonians among us have recently had, thanks to the Metro newspaper (recommended by four out of five fishmongers) the weekly chance to ask questions of both Mayor Tom Menino and Dan "No Commuter Rail for me, I'm driving in today" Graubaskas, the head of the MBTA gang (and sometimes I think his pal Joe "The Mouthpiece" Pesaturo gets in on the action too.) Unfortunately all three officials take great pains to ensure the questions that You, The Readers have sent in are not answered, and take even greater pains to not answer the questions in the most arrogant and roundabout way as possible. To do this takes great skill: Recently Hizzoner was asked a question about Boston violence and he rambled on for nearly an entire column's worth of words, addressing absolutely none of the points the question raised. It was almost as if he was trying to answer a completely different question. He deserves an award for that kind of talent. If this mayorin' gig doesn't pan out, he's sure got a future as a Press Secretary.
( Monday's Metro paper had the usual Ask The T Guy Something That Won't Get Answered column... )
So, let's sum up, for our own benefit as well as for those who didn't read behind the cut:
Nicole from Chelsea, a bus commuter, asks the General Manager of the MBTA why the buses on a certain route take so long to arrive in the morning and how come there aren't enough buses on the route, because when one actually does arrive, it's often so full that it passes by new pickups. This leads to waits of over an hour some days for a bus that she can actually board. Nicole suggests that perhaps the route is busy enough that it warrants a bus every 5-7 minutes during daily operation.
Drivin' Danny G. condescendingly tells her to look at the schedule more closely because the schedule clearly says the buses arrive every 12 minutes when she wants to ride, not every 5 to 7 minutes like she thought, because Boston has these things called "rush hours" that apparently begin and end when the MBTA says they do. Nothing is said about the packed buses, the ones that pass by stops, and no acknowledgement is made that maybe Nicole has a point (admitting that would be a sign of weakness and the T can't show any weakness, no sir.) Instead, Dan's gonna make sure the buses adhere to their clearly inadequate schedule and run on time.
So cheer up, Nicole from Chelsea. Instead of waiting 20 minutes to see each crowded bus pass you by in the morning, you'll only have to wait 12! Just think of the time you'll save! But if you'd prefer the direct translation from the GM's lips to your ears: Suck it up, baby, and thank you for riding the T.
(Yes, I know I'm being extremely rude and caustic here and boy do I know this is totally sock it to them fatcats -- no, not really. But if the GM of the T wants this column to be a great customer outreach program, perhaps he'd better figure out a friendlier way to, well, reach out to the customers. If the highest-up in the place believes condescending answers make for good customer service, what does he expect of the employees below him who have day-to-day contact with the riders? Mull that one over, Martin.)
The Bostonians among us have recently had, thanks to the Metro newspaper (recommended by four out of five fishmongers) the weekly chance to ask questions of both Mayor Tom Menino and Dan "No Commuter Rail for me, I'm driving in today" Graubaskas, the head of the MBTA gang (and sometimes I think his pal Joe "The Mouthpiece" Pesaturo gets in on the action too.) Unfortunately all three officials take great pains to ensure the questions that You, The Readers have sent in are not answered, and take even greater pains to not answer the questions in the most arrogant and roundabout way as possible. To do this takes great skill: Recently Hizzoner was asked a question about Boston violence and he rambled on for nearly an entire column's worth of words, addressing absolutely none of the points the question raised. It was almost as if he was trying to answer a completely different question. He deserves an award for that kind of talent. If this mayorin' gig doesn't pan out, he's sure got a future as a Press Secretary.
( Monday's Metro paper had the usual Ask The T Guy Something That Won't Get Answered column... )
So, let's sum up, for our own benefit as well as for those who didn't read behind the cut:
Nicole from Chelsea, a bus commuter, asks the General Manager of the MBTA why the buses on a certain route take so long to arrive in the morning and how come there aren't enough buses on the route, because when one actually does arrive, it's often so full that it passes by new pickups. This leads to waits of over an hour some days for a bus that she can actually board. Nicole suggests that perhaps the route is busy enough that it warrants a bus every 5-7 minutes during daily operation.
Drivin' Danny G. condescendingly tells her to look at the schedule more closely because the schedule clearly says the buses arrive every 12 minutes when she wants to ride, not every 5 to 7 minutes like she thought, because Boston has these things called "rush hours" that apparently begin and end when the MBTA says they do. Nothing is said about the packed buses, the ones that pass by stops, and no acknowledgement is made that maybe Nicole has a point (admitting that would be a sign of weakness and the T can't show any weakness, no sir.) Instead, Dan's gonna make sure the buses adhere to their clearly inadequate schedule and run on time.
So cheer up, Nicole from Chelsea. Instead of waiting 20 minutes to see each crowded bus pass you by in the morning, you'll only have to wait 12! Just think of the time you'll save! But if you'd prefer the direct translation from the GM's lips to your ears: Suck it up, baby, and thank you for riding the T.
(Yes, I know I'm being extremely rude and caustic here and boy do I know this is totally sock it to them fatcats -- no, not really. But if the GM of the T wants this column to be a great customer outreach program, perhaps he'd better figure out a friendlier way to, well, reach out to the customers. If the highest-up in the place believes condescending answers make for good customer service, what does he expect of the employees below him who have day-to-day contact with the riders? Mull that one over, Martin.)
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