(The following article by Emily Shartin was posted on the Boston Globe website on August 12.)
BOSTON — On a warm Friday afternoon at Boston’s South Station, Bob Ryan made his way onto a train and quickly settled into a seat in an air-conditioned car. For him and many other commuters on the Worcester-bound train, finding a comfortable berth for the long ride home to the suburbs is not always this easy.
Many riders have complained about a lack of air conditioning on commuter rail trains, a problem they say has been ongoing for several summers. Although the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority has recognized the problem and predicted the faulty cars would be repaired by the end of July, some commuters say there typically is still at least one car on their trains that — especially in the late afternoons — feels like a sauna.
You can tell which one it is because it’s usually empty. Ryan, a lawyer who lives in Shrewsbury, sometimes walks from car to car looking for a seat, and can size up the vacant compartments before he opens the door.
“Sure enough, you step in and it’s hot,” he said.
On some trains, the heat has forced passengers to squeeze into the aisles of cooler cars.
“There’s no seat left on a car you’re not going to pass out on,” said Rachel Deyette Werkema, who commutes to Boston on the Worcester-Framingham line from her home in Ashland.
But the T insists its contractor, the Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad, which operates the trains and is responsible for repairs, is making progress. As of last week, the air conditioning units on 174 cars had been repaired, according to T spokesman Joe Pesaturo. On Thursday, 13 cars were out of service for repairs, down from as many as 71 on June 9, he wrote in an e-mail. As more cars are repaired and returned to the tracks, he added, crowding should be less of a problem.
“We do have enough cars for service now,” said Pesaturo.
Some have noticed a difference. Jim Wood, who commutes on the Fitchburg/South Acton line, which travels through Lincoln and Waltham, said service has improved since around the time of last month’s Democratic National Convention. In early June, he said, several cars would routinely lack air conditioning, but last week, he understood from conductors that all the cars on his train were air-conditioned.
“So far, it’s batting a thousand . . . we’ll see if that continues,” he said.
Riders say spotty air conditioning is one of several recurring problems involving the commuter rails. In Westborough, where Ryan boards the train, the parking lot frequently fills up, and commuters who are forced to park illegally are ticketed.
Passenger trains on the Worcester-Framingham line are also often delayed by freight shipments, and commuters say they rarely receive an explanation for why their trains are late.
“The communication is so poor,” said Werkema.
The T will reimburse passengers for their ride if service is more than 30 minutes late, a promise that Werkema and her husband regularly cash in on. But while she acknowledges the delays can be a cost savings, she noted that time is generally more important than money.
“You’d rather be able to rely on the train schedule,” she said.
Pesaturo confirmed that the T has fined the Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad more than $300,000 since January for service problems, including late trains and a lack of cars at peak travel hours. That figure includes $62,500 in penalties imposed in July.
Tara Frier, a spokeswoman for the Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad, said earlier this week that there are about 40 coaches out of about 370 that still have air-conditioning problems, and repairs are continuing. She said the commuter rail has tried to run only one malfunctioning car per train.
“We’re trying to keep in mind the convenience of customers,” she said, adding that she understands the frustration of riders.
The commuter rail is not directly penalized for air-conditioning problems, but crowding has resulted from cars being taken out of service for repairs. Frier said the fines are part of the railroad’s deal with the T to ensure proper service.
“It is a contract, and we agreed to the penalties,” she said.
Brian Welch, who said a lack of air conditioning has been a problem for all five years he has ridden the commuter rail, leaves his office at Harvard University early to ensure he can get a seat in an air-conditioned car for his ride home to Worcester. He gets to South Station about 20 minutes before his train leaves. Because the train is usually already there, he can get on.
Welch contacted the MBTA in May and was told the repairs would be finished by the end of the month. At that time, Pesaturo said, only a small number of cars had been identified as needing repairs, but the T soon discovered the problem was more extensive.
Before all the trains had air conditioning, Alan Fryer, a Dover resident who commutes from Needham Junction, said he would stand on the platform between cars to keep cool, but he said conductors no longer allow that. Last week, he said, the trains seemed to be more comfortable, but he also noted that he doesn’t make a habit of walking through every car.
“If the first one has air conditioning, I stay in that one and count my blessings,” said Fryer.