MBTA Chief Fields Commuter Complaints at Early-Morning D Line Stop

Flanked by a nearly a dozen suited transit officials and the mayor of Newton, the man in charge of running the MBTA spent this morning inviting complaints from riders at the far end of the D Line.

"We want to show them we're not sitting still, we're trying to make improvements, and that we appreciate their patronage," said General Manger Richard Davey, who made the stop at Riverside Station with Mayor Setti Warren as part of the T's "Join the GM" series.

As he introduced himself to riders waiting to board their morning train, Davey said he was already aware of most of the issues he had heard about at the station, particularly those related to overcrowding.

"When you're going outbound during rush hour, it's too hard to pack yourself in and you have to wait for two or three trains to pass before you can get on," Sara Juliani, a student from Waltham, said. "It takes me double the time to get home."

Davey said the T is looking to increase trains from two to three cars, but said the agency only has enough cars to do so during rush hour.

Davey also fielded complaints about frequent delays on the D Line, which is often  disrupted by fallen trees and debris on the train tracks.

"It breaks down too often and sometimes up to two or three times a week," Boris Rovner said.

But Rovner, who lives in Boston, said he appreciated the MBTA's efforts to engage in conversations with riders.

"They're definitely trying to improve but I know it takes time and money," Rovner said.

Davey, a longtime tranist administrator who took over the MBTA in March, said his agency has a budget of up to $10 million in the next 18 months to work on reliability. The general manger plans to put that money to use addressing a wide range of issues, including accessibility, infrastructure improvements, fare evasion, and clarifying announcements on approaching trains.

Davey said he's particularly interested in what one rider called a game of 'Kenmore Roulette,' where riders have to guess which train is approaching next on either side of the tracks.

"Particularly on the green line, we have a higher level of traffic," Davey said. "The issues we're hearing today are nothing unknown, but we're taking answers and moving solutions."