South Station’s brand-new commuter rail fare gates are on the fritz again. Several lanes have been wrapped up and taped off this week, forcing riders to weave around the darkened barriers. The system, installed late last year to crack down on fare evasion, has now been sidelined twice in rough winter weather and high winds, frustrating riders and raising fresh questions about how well the pricey equipment can handle Boston’s elements.
Gates Go Dark Again After Brief Comeback
The latest closures follow a Jan. 25–26 storm that blew heavy snow into the station’s open concourse and briefly knocked the gates offline before they were brought back on Feb. 4, according to Boston.com. After that short-lived return, some of the new lanes were once again wrapped and closed this week, sending commuters around taped-off exits to reach their trains.
Keolis Blames Wind As Much As Snow
Keolis told The Boston Globe that the gates were “designed and positioned in consideration of weather impacts,” but recent storms have shown that wind is a major issue in the exposed station. The company said it is now evaluating different ways to shield the equipment and will keep vulnerable gates covered during rain or snow while it studies longer-term fixes.
Multi-Million Dollar System, Mixed Early Returns
The MBTA has said it spent about $1.3 million to purchase the Scheidt & Bachmann gate hardware and roughly $2 million on installation, as reported by Boston.com. Keolis says there are 40 gates positioned around the concourse and that the rollout started at the end of December, according to the operator’s release. The company has also told local outlets that mobile mTicket activations for trips to and from South Station are up about 42 percent year over year, a figure highlighted by NBC Boston.
Riders Stuck In Snaking Lines
Commuters told local outlets that the on-again, off-again shutdowns have created long queues that spill into the concourse and tack extra minutes onto already tight connections. The executive director of TransitMatters told Boston 25 that the bumpy rollout is aggravating, but argued that fare gates are still an important tool to protect revenue as the MBTA faces mounting budget pressure.
What Riders Can Expect Next
Keolis says final testing and commissioning of the system is still underway and that customer service staff will remain stationed near the equipment to help riders figure out where and how to tap or scan, according to the operator’s Feb. 4 update. For now, the affected gates will stay covered whenever the weather threatens and conductors will continue checking tickets on board trains while the agency and its vendors work through technical issues and search for sturdier, weather-proofed solutions.
The gates are already generating more paid trips, but the repeated outages highlight the tradeoff between bringing in more revenue and keeping riders moving smoothly. Transit officials say more engineering work is likely before similar fare systems appear at Back Bay and Ruggles. In the meantime, riders should be ready to tap or scan, expect some on-board ticket checks, and look for station staff while Keolis and its contractors sort out how to keep the South Station gates running when the weather turns ugly.
