MBTA GM: This Is What Happens From Aging Infrastructure

Following a Green Line foul-up Wednesday morning that sent passengers off the underground trains and onto shuttle buses, MBTA General Manager Beverly Scott said the incident demonstrated transit workers’ pluck and the need to invest in the transit system.

“This is another reason that we’re sitting up here talking about reinvestment,” Scott said in a brief interview at the State House on Wednesday morning.

“This is why we need more revenue,” Transportation Secretary Richard Davey chimed in on his way by.

Scott described how a smoldering box at Arlington Station had thrown a wrench into the morning rush hour for Green Line passengers. She said the MBTA workers who rushed to alleviate the situation are “absolutely scrappers.”

Wednesday was likely the biggest foul-up Scott has presided over since heading up the transit agency in December. “You deal with it,” Scott said. “It’s not a time to become emotional.”

Scott said that transit workers and Boston Fire Department officials will sit down to assess the response to the situation to see how to work “differently, smarter next time.” Scott also highlighted the capital investments that would prevent a future situation.

“This is what happens from aging infrastructure,” Scott said.