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Weekend service suspension of Fitchburg line postponed to begin on June 1, not May 4

May 2, 2013 02:41 PM

The weekend service suspension of the Fitchburg commuter rail line scheduled for May 4 has been postponed to begin on Saturday June 1, according to the Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad Company.

Due to MBTA improvement projects on the line, service will not be available between the Fitchburg and South Acton stations on Saturdays and Sundays from June 1 to July 28. On Independence Day weekend (July 4 to July 7), weekend train service will be provided.

On Saturday August 3, weekend service will be suspended for the South Acton, West Concord, Concord, Lincoln, and Kendal Green stations until November 17. Weekend train service will be available on Labor Day weekend (August 31 to September 2).

Substitute buses will not be provided throughout the duration of the project.

Trains will terminate and originate at South Acton during the first phase of the project. During Phase 2, trains will terminate and originate at Brandeis/Roberts.

Phase 1: June 1 - July 28 (Fitchburg to/from South Acton)
Trains will terminate and originate at South Acton. During these weekend outages, the following stations will be closed:

  • Fitchburg
  • North Leominster
  • Shirley
  • Ayer
  • Littleton/Route 495

Fitchburg line trains (inbound and outbound) between South Acton and North Station will operate on the normal weekend schedule.

Phase 2: August 3 - November 17 Fitchburg to/from Brandeis/Roberts
Trains will terminate and originate at Brandeis/Roberts. The following stations will be closed:

  • South Acton
  • West Concord
  • Concord
  • Lincoln
  • Kendal Green (Weston)

Fitchburg line trains (inbound and outbound) between Brandeis/Roberts and North Station will operate on the normal weekend schedule.

Weekday service will not be impacted.

For more information, visit MBTA.com.

Voters' guide for state legislative districts west of Boston

October 29, 2012 10:00 AM

Want to learn about who's running for state representative and state senator in your district? Here's our voters' guide to the candidates facing off in this year's general election on Nov. 6.

STATE SENATE

Bristol and Norfolk (Medfield): James E. Timilty (D-Walpole, incumbent), Jeffrey Robert Bailey (R-Attleboro)
Click here for the Globe's coverage.

1st Middlesex (Dunstable, Groton, Pepperell): Eileen M. Donoghue (D-Lowell, incumbent), James J. Buba (R-Lowell)
Click here for the Globe's coverage.

3rd Middlesex (Bedford, Carlisle, Concord, Lincoln, Lexington, Sudbury, Waltham, Weston): Michael J. Barrett (D-Lexington), Sandi Martinez (R-Chelmsford)
Click here for the Globe's coverage.

4th Middlesex (Arlington, Lexington): Kenneth J. Donnelly (D-Arlington, incumbent), Gerry C. Dembrowski (R-Woburn)
Click here for the Globe's coverage.

1st Middlesex and Norfolk (Brookline, Newton, Wellesley): Cynthia Stone Creem (D-Newton, incumbent)

2nd Middlesex and Norfolk (Ashland, Framingham, Franklin, Holliston, Hopkinton, Medway, Natick): Karen E. Spilka (D-Ashland, incumbent)

Middlesex and Worcester (Acton, Ayer, Berlin, Bolton, Boxborough, Harvard, Hudson, Littleton, Marlborough, Maynard, Northborough, Shirley, Southborough, Stow, Sudbury, Westborough): James B. Eldridge (D-Acton, incumbent), Dean J. Cavaretta (R-Stow)
Click here for the Globe's coverage.

Norfolk, Bristol, and Middlesex (Franklin, Millis, Natick, Needham, Norfolk, Plainville, Sherborn, Wayland, Wellesley, Wrentham): Richard J. Ross (R-Wrentham, incumbent)

2nd Suffolk and Middlesex (Belmont, Watertown): William N. Brownsberger (D-Belmont, incumbent), Steven W. Aylward (R-Watertown)
Click here for the Globe's coverage.

1st Worcester (Boylston, Northborough): Harriette L. Chandler (D-Worcester, incumbent)

2nd Worcester (Shrewsbury, Upton): Michael O. Moore (D-Millbury, incumbent), Stephen R. Simonian (R-Auburn)
Click here for the Globe's coverage.

Worcester and Norfolk (Bellingham, Milford): Richard T. Moore (D-Uxbridge, incumbent)


STATE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES

1st Middlesex (Ayer, Dunstable, Groton, Pepperell): Sheila C. Harrington (R-Groton, incumbent)

2nd Middlesex (Littleton): James Arciero (D-Westford, incumbent), Valerie A. Wormell (R-Westford)
Click here for the Globe's coverage.

3rd Middlesex (Bolton, Hudson, Maynard, Stow): Kate Hogan (D-Stow, incumbent), Chuck S. Kuniewich, Jr. (R-Hudson)
Click here for the Globe's coverage.

4th Middlesex (Marlborough, Northborough, Westborough): Danielle Gregoire (D-Marlborough), Steven L. Levy (R-Marlborough, incumbent)
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5th Middlesex (Millis, Natick, Sherborn): David Paul Linsky (D-Natick, incumbent), William J. Callahan (R-Natick)
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6th Middlesex (Framingham): Chris Walsh (D-Framingham, incumbent)

7th Middlesex (Ashland, Framingham): Tom Sannicandro (D-Ashland, incumbent), Jon Andrew Fetherston (R-Ashland)
Click here for the Globe's coverage.

8th Middlesex (Holliston, Hopkinton, Southborough, Westborough): Carolyn C. Dykema (D-Holliston, incumbent), Martin A. Lamb (R-Holliston)
Click here for the Globe's coverage.

9th Middlesex (Lincoln, Waltham): Thomas M. Stanley (D-Waltham, incumbent)

10th Middlesex (Newton, Waltham, Watertown): John J. Lawn, Jr. (D-Watertown, incumbent), Francis Xavier Stanton, III (R-Waltham)
Click here for the Globe's coverage.

11th Middlesex (Newton): Kay S. Kahn (D-Newton, incumbent), Greer Tan Swiston (R-Newton)
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12th Middlesex (Newton): Ruth S. Balser (D-Newton, incumbent)

13th Middlesex (Framingham, Marlborough, Sudbury, Wayland): Thomas P. Conroy (D-Wayland, incumbent)

14th Middlesex (Acton, Carlisle, Concord): Cory Atkins (D-Concord, incumbent), Michael J. Benn (R-Concord)
Click here for the Globe's coverage.

15th Middlesex (Lexington): Jay R. Kaufman (D-Lexington, incumbent)

21st Middlesex (Bedford): Ken Gordon (D-Bedford), Walter Zenkin (R-Burlington)
Click here for the Globe's coverage.

23rd Middlesex (Arlington): Sean Garballey (D-Arlington, incumbent), Joseph J. Monju (R-Arlington)

24th Middlesex (Arlington, Belmont): David M. Rogers (D-Cambridge), Tommasina Anne Olson (R-Belmont), James F. Gammill (Open Innovative Government-Belmont)
Click here for the Globe's coverage.

29th Middlesex (Watertown): Jonathan Hecht (D-Watertown, incumbent)

37th Middlesex (Boxborough, Harvard, Shirley): Jennifer E. Benson (D-Lunenberg, incumbent)

9th Norfolk (Medfield, Millis, Norfolk, Plainville, Wrentham): Daniel B. Winslow (R-Norfolk, incumbent)

10th Norfolk (Franklin, Medway): Jeffrey N. Roy (D-Franklin), Richard A. Eustis (R-Medway)

13th Norfolk (Dover, Needham, Medfield): Denise C. Garlick (D-Needham, incumbent)

14th Norfolk (Wayland, Wellesely, Weston): Alice Hanlon Peisch (D-Wellesley, incumbent)

15th Norfolk (Brookline): Frank Israel Smizik (D-Brookline, incumbent)

10th Suffolk (Brookline): Edward F. Coppinger (D-West Roxbury, incumbent)

15th Suffolk (Brookline): Jeffrey Sanchez (D-Jamaica Plain, incumbent)

18th Suffolk (Brookline): Michael J. Moran (D-Brighton, incumbent)

8th Worcester (Bellingham): Robert J. Dubois (D-Blackstone), Kevin J. Kuros (R-Uxbridge, incumbent)
Click here for the Globe's coverage.

9th Worcester (Upton): George N. Peterson, Jr. (R-Grafton, incumbent)

10th Worcester (Medway, Milford): John V. Fernandes (D-Milford, incumbent)

11th Worcester (Shrewsbury, Westborough): Matthew A. Beaton (R-Shrewsbury, incumbent)

12th Worcester (Berlin, Boylston, Northborough): Harold P. Naughton, Jr. (D-Clinton, incumbent)

High School Quiz Show gears up for Nov. 4 qualifying event

October 24, 2012 06:37 PM


The following was submitted by WGBH

Academic teams from 95 public high schools across Massachusetts will gather at WGBH in Brighton on November 4 for a chance to compete on season four of High School Quiz Show. Hosted by Billy Costa, the Emmy Award-winning, fast-paced game show showcases teens from across the Commonwealth and celebrates academic achievement.

See the full list of schools here.

On “Super Sunday,” each academic team of four students will take an identical oral quiz of 100 questions. From the 95 schools, the top 16 teams will advance to appear on the televised show, a single-elimination, bracketed academic tournament that includes eight qualifying matches, quarterfinals, semifinals and a state championship match.

This year the season will culminate with a Bay State vs. Granite State showdown, when WGBH’s High School Quiz Show state champion team meets New Hampshire Public Television’s Granite State Challenge “SuperChallenge” winner for the very first inter-state quiz show play-off.

“It was our hope to create a showcase for academic achievement that would eventually take hold in communities across the Commonwealth,” said Executive Producer Hillary Wells. “By all accounts, it looks like we’re well on our way with a record number of registered schools for this year’s Super Sunday, audience growth year after year, and increasing social media banter and buzz. The real credit, of course, goes to the coaches and to the participating students who continue to impress and amaze us with their enthusiasm, poise under pressure, and depth of knowledge.

All questions on High School Quiz Show are aligned with the Massachusetts high school curriculum standards in subjects including literature, history, science, and math, as well as current events and general knowledge. The weekly series begins taping at WGBH in January in front of a live studio audience.

High School Quiz Show is endorsed by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education. The Princeton Review judges the televised competition and reviews the questions.

Major sponsorship for High School Quiz Show is provided by Safety Insurance and the Bank of America Charitable Foundation.

Additional funding is provided by Massachusetts Teachers Association, XFINITY from Comcast, Harvard Summer School Secondary School Program, Bentley University, Subaru of New England, and Brain Injury Association of Massachusetts.

For more information, visit highschoolquizshow.org, become a fan on Facebook and follow the show on Twitter.

Middlesex District Attorney Leone partners with nonprofit Team Impact

September 17, 2012 02:42 PM

The Middlesex District Attorney’s Office and the non-profit organization Team Impact are getting together on an effort to benefit kids facing life-threatening illnesses by partnering them with college athletes, according to the district attorney's office.

Team Impact pairs these children with college athletic teams to provide the child with a team-based support system during their treatment and beyond, according to Leone's office.

The collaboration, which is sponsored by the district attorney's office, will use Leone's existing relationship with the Middlesex College Consortium to recruit schools to participate in Team Impact's program.

The consortium, established in 2007, created bi-annual meetings with Middlesex County college and university safety officials to focus on the unique safety and security issues on their campuses. Representatives from schools’ administrations, as well as campus safety and security staff leaders, partner with the district attorney's office on prevention efforts aimed at keeping campuses safe.

“By focusing on prevention through partnerships like these, we hope to make a positive and lasting impact on young people so that they can make constructive and healthy decisions for their future," said District Attorney Gerry Leone in a prepared statement.

Dan Walsh, executive director of Team Impact, said he is thrilled about the new partnership with Leone's office.

“Initially, this collaboration will boost our family and athletic outreach efforts across Middlesex County communities and the 26 colleges within them," Walsh said in the statement.

In future phases, Team Impact plans to broaden its mission and the population of children they serve, and to work with Leone to identify kids who would benefit most from their program.

The collaboration will eventually include establishing a referral process in which children facing adversity, such as child survivors of crime, children whose family members have been victimized, and at-risk youth, are also partnered with local athletes, according to the statement.

In return, the athletes participating in the program create a positive experience for a youth facing incredible life challenges.

Middlesex County is the largest county in Massachusetts and one of the largest counties in the country with 54 towns and cities and 26 colleges in urban, suburban, and rural areas, comprising over one quarter of the population of Massachusetts.

The Middlesex District Attorney’s Office has offices throughout the county, including communities such as Ayer, Cambridge, Concord, Framingham, Lowell, Malden, Marlborough, Natick, Newton, Somerville, Waltham and Woburn.

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Follow us on Twitter: @yourframingham, @jaclynreiss

Jaclyn Reiss can be reached at jaclyn.reiss@globe.com


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