Bridging the interests of commuters, construction

Rebuilding old roads and bridges is long overdue in many parts of the Commonwealth. Still, is there nothing to do about these tie-ups but weep, cut each other off, and bang our horns in collective annoyance?

Not quite nothing. There are some creative ideas that could reduce, if not eliminate, the pain.

Planners in Cambridge, where almost every Charles River bridge in and out of the city will be under construction over the next six to eight years, have been thinking about this problem for months.

“What’s interesting here is that they’re going to be involved in several different bridges at one time,’’ said Beth Rubenstein, assistant city manager for community development.

The resulting traffic headache has already begun. The Boston University Bridge is down from four lanes combined to three, and will have one lane in each direction in September.

During some phases of construction, the number of overall lanes in and out of the city on various bridges could be reduced by many more than that. That means thousands of commuters will have to weigh options: stay in bad traffic or find another route. But traffic adjusts like water flowing downhill - it fills the easiest path - so alternate routes will probably be clogged as well.

Cambridge officials are hoping to capture frustrated commuters with public transit. Given the number of options among Boston, Cambridge, and Brookline, they may have a chance.

Rubenstein said the city is working with the Department of Conservation and Recreation, which manages the bridges, on some ideas to make transit more appealing during the construction period. They include increasing the frequency of certain bus and transit runs, rerouting buses, and potentially giving buses priority in some areas so they can move faster than car traffic.

It’s clear that the indebted Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, still deliberating fare hikes, does not have money for this. But the money could come from the state’s bridge budget, according to Wendy Fox, spokeswoman for the Department of Conservation and Recreation. Fox said the department has not committed to the Cambridge plans, but is interested in doing something to carry commuters through the high construction period.

Beyond Cambridge, the state is also initiating efforts to get better information out to services like Google, Mapquest, and the people who create Web applications for mobile devices. Traffic specialists say broader knowledge in the hands of commuters is key to reducing congestion because at least some of those affected can plan a different route or time their travel better if they know where and when lanes are closed.

Colin Durrant, a state transportation spokesman, said the state highway department recently posted raw lane-closure data on its website (mass.gov/eot/developers), a step that will allow Google and others to include the information on their maps. Durrant wants to post more comprehensive information.

Trains run hot and cold?

In the first three weeks of August, four people complained that train coaches were too hot. Four others complained the cars were too cold.

Anyone who rode the trains three years ago might be chuckling right now. The system suffered widespread air-conditioning problems, leading to a near passenger revolt from inside the steamy cars. Air-conditioning overhauls have vastly improved the situation. Fewer than 1 percent of train coaches had broken air conditioners during the past three months, according to the company.

Replacing faulty train ties

On Sept. 14, workers with the Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad Co. will begin a two-month project to replace 14,000 train ties on the line, which has branches to Middleborough and Kingston. The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority will run replacement bus service during some off-peak runs during that period, according to Joe Pesaturo, MBTA spokesman.

The T will not have to spend extra money this year to replace the faulty ties because the private company that runs the commuter rail is under contract for as many as 41,000 ties a year, Pesaturo said. Still, the T believes the original manufacturer is responsible for replacing the ties under its warrantee and has “engaged its legal team,’’ said Pesaturo.

So far, track inspectors have found problems with more than 6,000 train ties out of about 147,000 on the line, Pesaturo said.