Transit woes

Also: How Mattapan will be a case study for Boston's future; a "very close" encounter [Donate ❤️]( [View in Browser](  January 27, 2023 ☀️ Mostly sunny, with a high near 39. Good Morning Boston, TGIF! Here's something to put a spring in your step: Red Sox tickets, including for Opening Day, [go on sale today at 10 a.m.]( Everyone excited? [[Red Sox fans loudly boo.]( Ah, well... To the news: - We usually celebrate Fridays; after all, the work week is almost over for many of us! But for bus riders in the Worcester area, the week is ending on a bit of a down note. Beginning today, the Worcester Regional Transit Authority is indefinitely cutting its Friday bus service by about 10% due to a shortage of drivers that has hampered service for the past year. - The details: WRTA will drop 112 one-way trips across eight bus routes on Fridays. You can see all the canceled trips [here](. - Some WRTA leaders [have pointed to]( the state's [Paid Family and Medical Leave Act]( as a factor contributing to the shortage. In an interview with WBUR's Wilder Fleming, WRTA spokesperson Jamie Winters said a lot of drivers have simply called out sick. And because federal rules don't allow bus drivers to work over 60 hours a week, the agency has basically been running out of people who can work a fill-in overtime shift by the time Friday comes around. - The bigger issue: They could hire more drivers — but [the entire public transit industry is struggling with a bus driver shortage]( that has forced agencies across the country to cut service, [including the MBTA](. - A closer look at the T: A [report this week by the group Livable Streets]( concluded that the MBTA needs 300 more drivers to meet its current schedule, plus another 440 for its [reshaped route map](. Despite offering perks like signing bonuses and tuition reimbursement, the T has even fewer bus drivers than it did a year ago, [according to The Boston Globe](. The Globe also reports the trend is exacerbating racial inequality in Boston. - The bus driver shortage isn't the T's only challenge. Officials also announced a slate of weekend subway closures over the next month, beginning tomorrow. While the Orange Line will be affected most, the partial shutdowns will also touch the Green and Red Lines, as well as the Haverhill commuter rail later in February. - How to get around them: WBUR's Vanessa Ochavillo has [more details on the timing of the diversions, travel alternatives and the MBTA's explanations for the additional disruptions](. - What's next: Jeff Gonneville, the T's interim general manager, says they aren't planning any other "major full line shutdowns," but the partial closures will continue for months. Gonneville said yesterday that he's starting to work on a 12-month diversion calendar, calling it a difficult puzzle that has to account for [this year's four-month Sumner Tunnel shutdown]( the Government Center Garage project and the T's own staffing challenges. - While the weekday commute is mostly spared, that doesn't mean things are going super great. The MBTA is [still running a reduced fleet of Orange Line trains]( due to an equipment problem with the new cars, resulting in [up to 15 minute waits](. - Speaking of those new cars: The [already-delayed timeline]( for the new Orange and Red Line cars will again be pushed back due a slew of production issues. How long isn't clear. The latest timeline would deliver the rest of the new Orange Line cars by the end of this year and all the Red Line cars by September 2026. But Gonneville said that CRRC — the Chinese company building the new cars — doesn't even think it can meet those dates. - What's going on? The Globe has reported things at CRRC's Springfield plant are [a bit of a mess](. Additionally, Gonneville on Thursday [listed several ways]( that recent federal trade restrictions on China are hampering CRRC's business. - Heads up, North End denizens — that's not an earthquake. But you may feel some underground vibrations Saturday starting at 7 a.m. thanks to "ceiling demolition" work in the Sumner Tunnel. - Officials say the noisy work may continue during next weekend's tunnel closure, too. - Reminder: the full 24/7 Sumner Tunnel closure is slated to start in mid-May. P.S.— Gov. Maura Healey recently proposed a new cabinet-level position for her administration. Do you know what it would focus on? Take [our Boston News Quiz]( and test your knowledge of the local stories we covered this week. Nik DeCosta-Klipa Editor, Newsletters [Follow](  Support the news  The Rundown [Mattapan will be a case study in how to balance economic growth and racial equity]( City officials are working on a plan to redevelop Mattapan, beautify its main square, attract more businesses and add housing. And they're hoping to do all this without displacing the neighborhood's existing residents, who are mostly people of color. [Read more.]( [Mattapan will be a case study in how to balance economic growth and racial equity]( City officials are working on a plan to redevelop Mattapan, beautify its main square, attract more businesses and add housing. And they're hoping to do all this without displacing the neighborhood's existing residents, who are mostly people of color. [Read more.]( [Legal aid for lowest earners has been on the rise. But chief justice says Mass. needs more]( Supreme Judicial Court Chief Justice Kimberly Budd warned that legal aid organizations are facing a surge in demand in recent years, exposing a clear need for additional state support. [Read more.]( [Legal aid for lowest earners has been on the rise. But chief justice says Mass. needs more]( Supreme Judicial Court Chief Justice Kimberly Budd warned that legal aid organizations are facing a surge in demand in recent years, exposing a clear need for additional state support. [Read more.]( [A recently discovered asteroid had 'a very close encounter' with Earth]( There was no reason for alarm, as a NASA engineer called it "one of the closest approaches by a known near-Earth object ever recorded." It was only 2,200 miles above the Earth's surface. [Read more.]( [A recently discovered asteroid had 'a very close encounter' with Earth]( There was no reason for alarm, as a NASA engineer called it "one of the closest approaches by a known near-Earth object ever recorded." It was only 2,200 miles above the Earth's surface. [Read more.]( [Here's what we know about the early college expansion at Boston's Fenway High School]( The pilot program allows students to enroll in an extra year of high school to continue taking UMass Boston college courses for free and receive academic support from high school staff. [Read more.]( [Here's what we know about the early college expansion at Boston's Fenway High School]( The pilot program allows students to enroll in an extra year of high school to continue taking UMass Boston college courses for free and receive academic support from high school staff. [Read more.]( [House Democrats' new leader Jeffries vows not to 'go off the cliff' on debt ceiling]( Rep. Hakeem Jeffries insists the looming debt ceiling crisis will be resolved without his party submitting to demands by Republicans who want to tie government spending cuts to a debt limit hike. [Read more.]( [House Democrats' new leader Jeffries vows not to 'go off the cliff' on debt ceiling]( Rep. Hakeem Jeffries insists the looming debt ceiling crisis will be resolved without his party submitting to demands by Republicans who want to tie government spending cuts to a debt limit hike. [Read more.]( Anything Else? - A new immersive musical experience at the Massachusetts Museum of Contemporary Art [offers visitors the chance to briefly slide back into the early days of the pandemic]( reflect and — hopefully — move on. ​ - WBUR's Amelia Mason reports on [what it was like inside the reborn ManRay club in Cambridge during its first week](. For those who remember the old haunt, she writes that it "feels like old times," but they hope to cultivate "a new generation of diehards." - Greg Harris [writes in this commentary]( that the hyper-partisan debate over gas stoves is a case study in what's wrong with our politics.  What We're Reading 📚 - Welcome to the Shoppy Shop ([Grub Street]( - Prince Harry Is Right, and It’s Not Just a Matter of Royal Gossip ([The New York Times]( - You Don’t Know How Bad the Pizza Box Is ([The Atlantic](  Tell Me Something Good [The real-life "80 for Brady" fans (CBS News)]( Betty Pensavalle and Elaine St. Martin were part of a passionate group of fans devoted to quarterback Tom Brady, called “Over 80 for Brady.” They inspired a new comedy, starring Sally Field, Jane Fonda, Rita Moreno and Lily Tomlin, about football and friendship. [Read more.]( [The real-life "80 for Brady" fans (CBS News)]( Betty Pensavalle and Elaine St. Martin were part of a passionate group of fans devoted to quarterback Tom Brady, called “Over 80 for Brady.” They inspired a new comedy, starring Sally Field, Jane Fonda, Rita Moreno and Lily Tomlin, about football and friendship. [Read more.]( Listen: The Common looks at what Mayor Michelle Wu's State of the City speech [tells us about the remainder of her first term](. Before you go: [Don't jinx it.]( 😎 Forward to a friend. They can sign up [here](. 📣 Give us your feedback: newsletters@wbur.org 📧 Get more WBUR stories sent to your inbox. [Check out all of our newsletter offerings.]( Support the news   Want to change how you receive these emails? Stop getting this newsletter by [updating your preferences.](  I don't want to hear from WBUR anymore. 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