(Editor’s note: In the midst of the Sumner Tunnel shutdown, which began July 5 and will end Aug. 31, the MBTA has advised commuters to “ditch the drive” and use the Commuter Rail, Blue Line, or ferry instead.
Using these forms of public transportation, as well as a car, four Item reporters participated in a race from Lynn to Boston. The reporters left Lynn at approximately 7:30 a.m. Tuesday morning with the goal of reaching North Station by 9 a.m. Although Lynn is only 13 miles from Boston, it took our reporters an hour, on average, to get there during rush hour.)
As the Sumner Tunnel’s closure date approached, I grew more thankful my work commute did not involve taking public transportation into the heart of Boston. However, journalistic duty soon called: I would have to make the morning trek for research purposes.
Thankfully, the MBTA’s Blue Line ran pretty much on schedule despite the undertaking of so many new passengers. I was able to survive this enhanced rush hour with minimal annoyances.
I departed from Exchange Street promptly at 7:30 a.m. and arrived at the beautiful Wonderland Station 19 minutes later. That time included having to vehicularly climb to the third level of the parking garage and wait behind a fellow driver while they attempted to fit their mini-van into a mini-spot.
The weekday parking fees have been reduced from $7 to $2 for the Sumner closure, but I did not pay at the time of parking, so I’ll have to await a bill in the mail. After parking, I walked to the inbound platform, which took a few minutes as I got my bearings. I waited on the platform for the next train, which was three minutes away.
Being a veteran of the Orange Line’s Oak Grove Station, I am used to the docked trains waiting for minutes on end to finally take off. My first experience on the Blue Line, however, left me pleasantly surprised, as it left virtually as soon as it boarded — good news for me, perhaps not for any latecomers.
My train car had enough space to seat passengers comfortably until the airport stop, where an influx of riders boarded. After several more passengers jumped on at Maverick, I officially applied the term “crowded” to the car. It didn’t last long though, as many got off at State Street. The doors opened at Bowdoin at 8:24 a.m., exactly 25 minutes after it went on the move from Wonderland. Once I resurfaced into civilization from the underground world, I began the third leg of my commute triathlon: walking.
The route I took had me crossing the street at Bowdoin Square, taking a left down Canal Street, and emerging to the sight of the front entrance of TD Garden. The walk took 10 minutes, and my fake commute clocked in at a total of one hour and five minutes.
The day before, I took the same Blue Line route at 9:30 a.m. I was expecting rush hour to cause some form of delay, but both days it took the same amount of time to go from start to end on that little map above the train doors. The only real variable that changed was the traffic on the way to Wonderland.
I may have come in third, but if there’s a stop near you, the Blue Line just might be worth it. Plus, the train is free.