Commuter Rail Teams Prepare Ahead of Snowfall and Encourage Passengers Traveling Wednesday to Use Caution
Forecasts suggest 4 – 7 inches of snow across the region beginning Tuesday night
BOSTON – January 16, 2018 – Keolis Commuter Services (Keolis), the MBTA’s commuter rail operating partner, is preparing for snowfall this week by pre-positioning crews, inspecting key infrastructure and securing additional resources. Passengers traveling Wednesday should use caution when boarding trains and leave additional time to travel to and from stations. Regular service is planned for Wednesday.
According to recent National Weather Service forecasts, approximately 4 – 7 inches of snow is expected beginning Tuesday night and continuing into Wednesday evening.
“Our teams have been preparing over the last several days to help ensure passenger safety and to minimize the snow’s impact on commuter rail service,” said David Scorey, CEO and General Manager, Keolis. “We’re applying sand and salt to platforms, and making sure switches, rail and other infrastructure are prepared as best as possible for snowfall and cold conditions. Passengers should please use caution when boarding trains and check train schedules before traveling.”
Commuter rail uses these service indictors to communicate changes to schedules as a result of severe weather. Passengers should stay connected with the MBTA and Keolis’s customer service team by visiting MBTA.com, following @MBTA_CR on Twitter and signing up for T-Alerts.
Commuter rail preparation activities for this storm include:
- Securing additional crews and scheduling teams to be available and pre-positioned before, during and after the storm
- Inspecting key infrastructure, such as rail, switches and switch heaters
- Readying snow-fighting equipment to be deployed as necessary, including flangers, snow plow trains and snow blowers
- Re-filling key resources, such as sand, salt and other necessary items to properly maintain the network and infrastructure
