MBTA Proposes Major Service Cuts and Fare Increases

MBTA proposals to soak up red ink with fare increases and service cuts got a chilly reception at the Swampscott Train Station Tuesday.

The plans would boost daily fares by about 30 to 50 percent and drop service after 10 pm on weekdays and all together on Saturday and Sunday.

"I think it's crazy," said Dan Massa of Swampscott, waiting in the cold for a train at the Swampscott station Tuesday afternoon.

He said the cuts would strand riders, including students and fans, who depend on the service.

Those who attend evening classes and go to Bruins games and other Boston sporting events use the MBTA to get into Boston.

Commuter Dan Devlin of Swampscott said people want better service. Not less service and higher fares.

"I think what everyone wants is for the trains to show up on time," he said on Tuesday after stepping off a train from his daily Boston commute.

He's not looking forward to paying higher fares and seeing another bite taken out of his paycheck.

The service cuts would not affect him because he works 8 to 4 on a Monday through Friday schedule.

But he said price increases do not typically result in reduced services.

The MBTA is trying crawl out from under a mountain of debt and faces a $161 million shortfall in the next fiscal year, starting July 1.

It proposes the service reductions and higher ticket prices to offset losses.

The MBTA service is used by many Swampscott workers, many of whom prefer a 20-minute train ride to North Station instead of fighting traffic.

A US Census report says 11 percent of Swampscott residents take public transportation to work, the highest percentage on the North Shore.

The plans will go to public hearings this winter and to a vote of the state Department of Transportation in the spring. 

The changes, if approved, go into effect July 1.