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Commuter rail network ‘failing’ riders, group says

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 16:18:44 GMT

A scathing new report from transportation watchdog TransitMatters finds the state’s commuter rail system is in need of full-scale overhaul if Massachusetts hopes to meet self-imposed Net Zero carbon goals by 2050.The report, titled “Turning Vision into Reality: the Moment for Regional Rail is Now,” indicates the state is at a transit crossroads, faced with the choice of maintaining an outdated and ailing diesel fleet, or investing in the kind of regional transportation that actually works for residents.“The MBTA’s commuter rail system is failing the people it should serve,” the report reads, in part. “Riders from Gateway Cities like Haverhill and Fitchburg must pay high fares for trains that come hourly or worse.”“Environmental justice communities like Dorchester and Chelsea are exposed to dangerous black carbon emissions from diesel locomotives and are forced to contend with long bus trips because of commuter rail’s expense, low frequency, and unreliability. White collar workers wi...

Orioles reset: Like Buster Posey before him, Adley Rutschman showing value of having a two-way catcher

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 16:18:44 GMT

A historic franchise coming off down seasons called up a catcher with a boyish face and suddenly, everything changed.More than a decade after Buster Posey returned the San Francisco Giants to prominence, Adley Rutschman is having a similar impact in Baltimore. Since calling him up last May, the Orioles have transformed into one of baseball’s top teams after years as one of its worst.Rutschman has drawn comparisons to Posey since before he was drafted first overall in 2019, and they have only grown since he reached the majors. It’s perhaps unfair, given Posey’s 12-season career could land him in the Hall of Fame and featured numerous World Series championships, All-Star appearances and Silver Sluggers to go with a Gold Glove. Rutschman has yet to accomplish any of those, though he’s positioned to change that this season.But as Posey was to the Giants, Rutschman, 25, is a catcher who is vital to his team on both sides of the ball and is in many ways its centerp...

MBTA will add ‘head of stations’ job after mishaps

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 16:18:44 GMT

The MBTA’s new GM is creating a new “head of stations” job to oversee operations at the agency’s many train stops after a series of mishaps and equipment failures at the facilities.Phil Eng, just a few months into his job as chief of the beleaguered authority, said the need for the role was apparent to him based off of experience at other rail companies.“In past agencies I saw where a ‘head of stations’ is a single point of accountability, right? Somebody who is managing a team, obviously we have many stations across the system, but that team will be there to support this person in terms of the environment of our stations, the safety of our stations, and to bring together all the different functional groups that support addressing those in a more timely manner,” he said in remarks Sunday during WCVB’s “On the Record.”Eng’s declaration he would find someone to take the reins at the T’s several stations comes after one woman was nearly struck by a falling...

Lucas: Good to see renewed support for veterans on Beacon Hill

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 16:18:44 GMT

Massachusetts has not had a military veteran serve as governor in more than 30 years.That last veteran to serve as governor was U.S. Army veteran Michael S. Dukakis (1955-1957) who served as an enlisted man in Korea after the Korean War ended in 1953. He left the governor’s office in 1990.So it is of interest that Gov. Maura Healey, a non-veteran and a progressive, would take an interest in the well-being of Massachusetts men and women who served their country.Progressives as a rule tend to shun all things military.Dukakis, 89, who enlisted following graduation from Swarthmore College, was a 21-year-old radio operator on the DMZ, the armistice line that still separates the two Koreas.The Korean war, often referred to as “The Forgotten War”—lodged as it was between World War II and Vietnam– began on June 25, 1950, when the Communist North Korea, later abetted by Communist China, invaded South Korea, then a fledgling democracy and a U.S. ally and protectorate.It ended back where...

Russia claims Ukraine is launching major attacks; Kyiv accuses Moscow of misinformation

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 16:18:44 GMT

KYIV, Ukraine (AP) — Moscow officials claimed that Ukrainian forces were making a major effort to punch through Russian defensive lines in southeast Ukraine for a second day Monday. Kyiv authorities didn’t confirm the attacks and suggested the claim was a Russian misinformation ruse. Vladimir Rogov, a Moscow-installed official in southeast Ukraine’s partly-occupied Zaporizhzhia province, said fighting resumed there early Monday after Russian defenses beat back a Ukrainian advance the previous day.Rogov claimed that “the enemy threw an even bigger force into the attack than yesterday.” The new attempt to break through the front line was “more large-scale and organized,” he said, adding: “A battle is underway.”Rogov’s comments came after Moscow also claimed to have thwarted large Ukrainian attacks in the eastern Donetsk region, another of the four regions that President Vladimir Putin claimed as Russian territory last fall and partially controls.Russia’s Defense Mini...

Weekend drivers demand answers after DVP, Gardiner shut down longer than expected

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 16:18:44 GMT

Toronto drivers are demanding answers after the city’s two main thoroughfares into downtown were shut down longer than anticipated over the weekend.Both the Gardiner Expressway and the Don Valley Parkway were scheduled to be closed off for 14 hours on Sunday to make room for thousands of cyclists taking part in a charity bike ride, the Bike for Brain Health, which raises money and awareness to help defeat dementia.But several drivers who called in to the CityNews 680 traffic centre expressed dismay after the major routes remained closed hours after the scheduled reopening time at 4 p.m.. Some drivers even noted they were running out of gas as they were left stuck in traffic backlogs that they thought would be cleared up by the early evening.“There’s a lot of people running out of gas because it’s at a complete standstill,” says one caller to the traffic centre who says they were left stuck on westbound Lakeshore Boulevard near Jameson Avenue during the ...

Turkish forces arrive in Kosovo to bolster NATO-led peacekeepers after recent violence

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 16:18:44 GMT

ISTANBUL (AP) — The Turkish commando battalion requested by NATO has arrived in Kosovo to assist in quelling recent violent unrest in the Balkan country.The Turkish Defense Ministry shared a video Sunday showing troops wearing the insignia of the NATO-led KFOR peacekeeping force departing Turkey and arriving in Kosovo. Violent clashes with ethnic Serbs last Monday left 30 international soldiers — 11 Italians and 19 Hungarians — wounded, including fractures and burns from improvised explosive incendiary devices.The clashes grew out of a confrontation that unfolded earlier after ethnic Albanian officials elected in votes overwhelmingly boycotted by Serbs entered municipal buildings to take office and were blocked by Serbs.Around 500 Turkish troops would be deployed, a defense ministry official said last week. The official spoke on condition of anonymity in line with ministry regulations. “The first convoy of the commando battalion attached to the 65th Mechanized Infantry Brigade Comma...

Prince Harry a no-show on first day of court showdown with British tabloid publisher

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 16:18:44 GMT

LONDON (AP) — Prince Harry’s phone hacking trial against the publisher of the Daily Mirror kicked off without him present in court — and the judge was not happy.Harry’s lawyer said the Duke of Sussex would be unavailable to testify after opening statements because he’d taken a flight from Los Angeles on Sunday after the birthday of his 2-year-old daughter, Lilibet. “I’m a little surprised,” Justice Timothy Fancourt said, noting he had directed Harry to be in court for the first day of his case.Mirror Group Newspaper’s lawyer, Andrew Green, said he was “deeply troubled” by Harry’s absence on the trial’s opening day.Harry was scheduled to testify Tuesday, but his lawyer was told last week the duke should attend Monday’s proceedings in London’s High Court in case the opening statements concluded before the end of the day. The case against the publisher of the Daily Mirror is the first of the prince’s several lawsuits against the media to ...

Texas woman killed in parked car, 3 children hurt in gunfire outside apartment complex

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 16:18:44 GMT

SUNNYVALE, Texas (AP) — A woman was fatally shot and four members of her family, including three children, were wounded in their car after they parked at a Texas apartment complex.Police said they were searching for at least two suspects in the shooting shortly before 6 p.m. Sunday in the town of Sunnyvale, about 15 miles (24 km) east of Dallas. “Everybody was shot in the car,” Sunnyvale Police Chief Bill Vegas said, noting that numerous shots were fired. “It’s a horrific scene,” Vegas said at a news conference near the scene, where a white car with bullet holes was in the parking lot. A man and a woman were in a black car that followed the family into the parking lot. As the family were sitting in their vehicle, at least one of the suspects got out and opened fire, Vegas said. The woman died at the scene. A man and the children, ages 8 to 10, were taken to hospitals. Their injuries were not believed to be life-threatening, Vegas said. The Associated Press

Hong Kong police arrest woman accused of killing 3 young daughters

Published Mon, 23 Dec 2024 16:18:44 GMT

HONG KONG (AP) — Hong Kong police arrested a woman accused of killing her three young daughters on Monday in a case that has shocked many in the city, where violent crime is rare. The three girls, aged 2, 4 and 5, were unresponsive when officers arrived at their apartment after receiving a call from the woman, who told police that they had been killed by her husband, police said. Police Superintendent Alan Chung said the woman and her husband had been separated for about a year, and they believe the woman was guilty of the killings. The children were declared dead at a hospital. Chung said no wounds were found on their bodies and no sharp objects or drugs were found at the scene. He said a bloodstained pillow was found and it was possible it was used to smoother the children. An investigation indicated that the case was linked to family relationship problems, Chung said. “This is a very serious family violence case,” he said. The woman and the girls lived in a small apartment in Sha...