MassINC poll: Majority of riders have felt unsafe on the T

A majority of current and former MBTA riders have felt unsafe at one point or another while taking the T, according to a new poll released last week. 

The MassINC Polling Group surveyed 1,000 residents in the MBTA’s service area and found that 70% have felt unsafe at least once or twice due to the condition of the trains, buses, stations, or other infrastructure.

The poll was conducted in August, during the Sumner Tunnel closure but before news of the upcoming Red Line shutdowns and the release of two reports documenting shortcomings in the MBTA’s track inspection process.

The transit system has grappled with staffing challenges and aging infrastructure, which came to a head earlier this year when the T implemented widespread speed restrictions after discovering missing and inconsistent documentation on track repairs. 

MBTA riders who felt unsafe gave lower ratings

According to the MassINC poll, only 28% of residents described the MBTA’s subway and trolley service as good or excellent, compared to 27% of survey takers who rated it poor. Buses scored more favorably, with 35% of respondents saying service was at least good, and the commuter rail came out on top, with 46% describing it as good or excellent. 

Safety concerns appear to be weighing down the overall ratings, MassINC said. 

“Riders who have felt unsafe multiple times give each T service lower ratings, a sign that concerns about safety are an important part of overall impressions of the system,” the organization said. 

Likewise, riders who have felt unsafe were less likely to paint a rosy picture of where the T will be 10 years from now. A plurality of survey takers — 45% — said they think the T will be better in a decade, compared to 30% who felt it will be the same, and 16% who think it will be worse. 

Meanwhile, MBTA General Manager Phillip Eng is on a mission to turn the T around, speaking at length about the need to improve the agency’s processes and change its safety culture.

Scrutiny over near misses, safety concerns

That work is often easier said than done.

Last week, the Federal Transit Administration ordered the MBTA to make immediate changes after workers were nearly struck by trains four times in the past month. Federal regulators previously flagged the issue of “near misses” earlier this year, ordering the T to submit a plan to improve worker safety. 

“Despite taking these actions, over the last month [the] MBTA has experienced four additional near miss events, including two incidents on the Red Line and two on the Green Line,” FTA Associate Administrator and Chief Safety Officer Joe DeLorenzo wrote in a letter Thursday. “The MBTA also failed to report these near misses as required by the Massachusetts Department of Public Utilities (DPU).”

As recently as this week, a Red Line train reportedly ignored a signal to stop and blew past some track workers at 25 mph on Monday, according to a report obtained by The Boston Globe.

The same Red Line operator and track workers were also involved in a similar near miss on Sept. 11 on the northbound tracks between Harvard and Porter, the Globe reported. No one was injured, and the operator has been taken out of service while the MBTA investigates, a T spokesperson told the newspaper.

Starting immediately, the T now must notify the FTA of near misses within two hours. The federal agency ordered several other actions, including a comprehensive analysis of each close call that has occurred since Aug. 1. 

The T is also facing pressure from Sens. Elizabeth Warren and Ed Markey over its ongoing safety issues, the Globe reported. 

The senators sent a letter to Eng and DPU Chair Jamie Van Nostrand last week asking for a briefing about recent safety incidents and long-term plans to address issues within the T, according to the Globe. 

“The communities that rely on the T deserve reliable, safe, accessible, and climate-forward transit,” the senators reportedly wrote in their letter. 

In a statement to the Globe last week, Eng also doubled down on the need for a safer MBTA. 

“I’ve made it very clear to our workforce that safety on or around MBTA equipment and property is my leading priority, and everyone — at every level of the organization — must work together to prevent these safety incidents and deliver on our commitment to provide our riders with the level of service they expect and deserve,” he told the newspaper.

Abby Patkin

Staff Writer

Abby Patkin is a general assignment news reporter whose work touches on public transit, crime, health, and everything in between.

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