Public transportation in Chelsea has been a frequent topic of discussion, yet elderly residents—among the heaviest users of these services—are often excluded from these conversations.
GreenRoots and a Boston University graduate student convened on Monday morning to listen to seniors in a confidential, multi-lingual forum about transit improvements.
Sarah Levy of GreenRoots noted that “We wanted to have this conversation because so many seniors depend on public transportation,” “We want to know what is working and what is not working. We hope this will being a conversation on how to improve public transportation for you all. It’s not going to be us coming one time and going away.”
The session drew strong attendance and generated animated discussion among participants.
Several concerns emerged that were particularly relevant to older riders.
One woman expressed that “The strollers are often a problem for us,” “Seniors get on with canes or walkers and the baby strollers block the space. When the bus starts going, they can’t get to a seat because the strollers slow them down. They can fall down.”
“I would suggest that they have strollers get on in back. That gives more space for seniors in the front.” another woman added.
Fostering better etiquette among younger commuters and adults represented another priority, with seniors advocating for education efforts to encourage seat-yielding.
“I hope the T can have an educational campaign to better let young people know that they are supposed to get up and provide a seat for an elderly or handicapped person,” a man stated.
However, the most pervasive grievance involved unreliable scheduling and inadequate service frequency.
One woman reported that “If you don’t come at the right time, you have to wait another hour,” “The 111 is usually ok, but the 116, 117 and 112 are always late and they are too crowded. Sometimes you can’t get on because it’s full and then you have to wait an hour for another bus.”
“Many people are left behind because the buses are so crowded. They are left standing there in the cold because there is no room for them.” according to another woman.
Additional significant issues raised by participants included:
- There needs to be more places to get a Charlie Card in Chelsea.
- The MBTA needs to schedule a time to come to Chelsea to do photos for Senior ID Passes.
- There needs to be more regular 111 buses and fewer 111C buses.
- The Chelsea loop bus to the Mystic Mall needs to be more predictable, and it needs to also go to the Parkway Plaza.