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MBTA weighing month-long nightly Blue Line shutdowns to address speed restrictions

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:48 GMT

The MBTA is leaning toward shutting down the Blue Line each night at 7 for a month to remove the line’s remaining speed restrictions, work the general manager said would otherwise take six months with normal overnight track access.General Manager Phillip Eng said Wednesday that the T is planning to lift seven of the 21 remaining speed restrictions by the end of May. By sticking to typical overnight track access, from 1-3 a.m., it could take the agency until the end of November to remove the remaining slow zones, he said.The MBTA considered shutting down Blue Line service at 9 p.m. for two months to accelerate that work — by allowing crews three additional hours of track access per night — but is looking at a more aggressive plan that would speed up the remainder of the line in a month, Eng said.“We wanted to try and see if we could do a little better here,” Eng told the T’s Board of Directors. “So we’re looking at starting at 7 p.m. That would give seven hours of opportunity for act...

Dolphins QB Tua Tagovailoa considered retirement after multiple concussions in 2022

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:48 GMT

Miami Dolphins quarterback Tua Tagovailoa, in his first organized press conference since his 2022 season was cut short due to a second stint in concussion protocol, admitted Wednesday that he gave retirement some thought at the end of the past season.Tagovailoa, ultimately, opted against it, and he is set to return to the Dolphins for a fourth NFL season in 2023, plus at least a fourth after Miami picked up the 2020 first-round pick’s fifth-year option on his rookie contract.“I considered it for a time, having sat down with my family, having sat down with my wife and having those conversations. “But, really, it would be hard for me to walk away from this game with how old I am, with my son. I always dreamed of playing as long as I could to where my son knew exactly what he was watching his dad do.“It’s my health. It’s my body. And I feel like this is what’s best for me and my family. I love the game of football. If I didn’t, I would...

Dolphins GM Chris Grier, assistant Marvin Allen assess offseason, offer outlook on draft

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:48 GMT

Miami Dolphins general manager Chris Grier and assistant general manager Marvin Allen held a press conference Wednesday to update the past month-plus of offseason moves and the outlook ahead of next week’s draft.The Dolphins exercised quarterback Tua Tagovailoa’s fifth-year option this offseason, which will keep him under contract through 2024.Grier noted “internal discussions” about all options being on the table when it comes to a long-term extension with Tagovailoa. Allen also offered his vote of confidence in Tagovailoa in his first public comments since the quarterback from Alabama was drafted with the No. 5 pick in 2020.“We have all the faith in the world in him,” Allen said. “We feel he’s the quarterback that’s going to get us to where we want to go.”Some other quick hits:Grier described trading for former Rams star cornerback Jalen Ramsey as “the opportunity to add a very good player.”With the Dolphins y...

Giancarlo Stanton and the Injured List: A look back at the Yankee slugger’s history of injuries

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:48 GMT

Giancarlo Stanton is back where he’s spent a good chunk of his Yankee career: the injured list.The 33-year-old was placed on the 10-day IL after pulling his hamstring jogging into second base in Saturday’s 6-1 win over the Twins. The expectation is that Stanton will be out at least four-to-six weeks.The 2017 NL MVP has experienced a plethora of injuries, mainly to his lower body throughout his pinstripe tenure. The California native has spent nearly 40% of regular season games on the shelf. The good news for the Bombers is that they’ve been equally successful with their big bopper off the field as they have been with him on it.Since being acquired by the Yanks in a trade with the Marlins prior to the start of the 2018 season, Aaron Boone’s club is 158-106 (.598) without Stanton and 279-182 (.605) with him.Here’s a look at all of the injuries that have landed the slugger on the injured list as a Yankee:APRIL 1, 2019: BICEP STRAINStanton landed on the inj...

How doing the bare minimum with debt is costing you

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:48 GMT

When you’re carrying a credit card balance, paying at least the minimum due each month is certainly a start. If those payments aren’t making your overall budget feel squeezed, you have all the more reason to put payments on autopilot and not think about the total cost of your debt.“Our pace of life has gotten really busy,” says Delia Fernandez, a certified financial planner and the founder and president of Fernandez Financial Advisory LLC in Los Alamitos, California. “There’s always something that’s more important, particularly for these people who are not in a financial crisis.”But that inertia can cost you, especially with average credit card interest rates reaching 20.4% as of November 2022, according to the Federal Reserve. NerdWallet’s 2022 American Household Credit Card Debt Study, conducted by Harris Poll, found that U.S. households with revolving credit card debt are paying an average of $1,380 in interest this year.There is good news, though: Dedicating even a small amount ...

Fernando Tatis Jr. set to return from suspension Thursday

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:48 GMT

SAN DIEGO (AP) — El Niño is coming.It could be quite the storm.Thursday night at Arizona, Fernando Tatis Jr. will be announced as the leadoff hitter for the San Diego Padres and settle into a big league batter’s box for the first time since the last game of the 2021 season.One of baseball’s most electrifying players will return from an 80-game PED suspension that shocked and angered his teammates and an entire fan base — and tempered his status as one of the sport's most prominent and likable stars. If a jaw-dropping power display during a rehab stint at Triple-A El Paso is any indication, the Padres will be getting back the player who was an All-Star at shortstop in 2021, when he led the NL with 42 homers.Perhaps equally important is the energy and swagger the 24-year-old from the Dominican Republic brings every time he steps on the field, whether it’s hitting tape-measure home runs and then dancing in the dugout, or baserunning exploits that sometimes defy physics. Petco Park to...

Oklahoma official who discussed killing reporters resigns

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:48 GMT

OKLAHOMA CITY (AP) — A county commissioner in far southeast Oklahoma who was apparently caught on tape discussing killing reporters and lynching Black people has resigned from office, Gov. Kevin Stitt’s office confirmed Wednesday.Stitt spokesperson Carly Atchison said the office received a handwritten resignation letter from McCurtain County Commissioner Mark Jennings. In it, Jennings says he is resigning immediately and that he plans to release a formal statement “in the near future regarding the recent events in our county.”The threatening comments by Jennings and officials with the McCurtain County Sheriff’s Office were obtained following a March 6 meeting and reported by McCurtain Gazette-News earlier this week in their weekend edition. They have sparked outrage and protests in the city of Idabel, the county seat. In a post on the sheriff’s office Facebook page on Tuesday, officials did not address the recorded discussion but claimed the recording was illegally obtained. A...

CAQ breaks major campaign promise on ‘third link’ road tunnel for Quebec City

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:48 GMT

QUEBEC — The Quebec government is abandoning plans to build a multi-purpose vehicular tunnel linking Quebec City to its south shore in favour of one that will be for public transit only, citing changing driving habits after the COVID-19 pandemic.The so-called “third link” across the St. Lawrence River — after the Pierre Laporte Bridge and the Quebec Bridge — was a key promise of Premier François Legault during the 2018 and 2022 election campaigns to woo voters in the capital region. Legault’s promises weren’t just designed to reduce traffic congestion but to show Quebec City-area voters that major projects could be realized in the capital and weren’t only destined for Montreal. But On Wednesday, the premier had to scale back his plans for the province’s second-biggest city.“I believe that as a government, when there is a change in context, we must be able to adapt, we must be pragmatic … and we must be responsible because we manage the funds...

Bargaining continues as federal workers picket, major service disruptions expected

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:48 GMT

OTTAWA — Canada’s largest federal public-service union and the federal government continue to negotiate as workers go on strike, triggering major service disruptions.Federal workers were hitting the picket lines across the country on Wednesday after Canada’s largest federal public-service union and the government failed to reach a deal by a Tuesday evening deadline.Federal ministers provided an update on the Public Service Alliance of Canada’s strike action in a news conference on Wednesday afternoon.“We will continue to work with the PSAC to reach agreements that are fair and competitive, but we cannot do that unless the union is prepared to compromise. We cannot write a blank check,” Treasury Board President Mona Fortier said.On Wednesday morning, Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said negotiations had paused and called on the union to come back to the table. For its part, the union said it was waiting for a better offer from government before resuming ta...

Stock market today: Wall Street wavers amid earnings updates

Published Thu, 20 Feb 2025 19:30:48 GMT

NEW YORK (AP) — Wall Street is wavering Wednesday following mixed earnings reports from big U.S. companies and another signal that inflation remains painfully hot around the world.The S&P 500 was mostly unchanged in afternoon trading following a dip earlier. The Dow Jones Industrial Average was down 62 points, or 0.2%, at 33,913, as of 1:15 p.m. Eastern time, while the Nasdaq composite was 0.2% higher. Tesla weighed heavily on the market after the electric-vehicle company cut prices for its two top-selling models, its fourth price cut in the U.S. this year. That could be a signal Tesla is trying to spur sales amid shifting U.S. tax credits for electric vehicles. Tesla shares fell 1.1%. Netflix fell 3.9% after reporting weaker revenue for the latest quarter than analysts expected, though its profit topped forecasts. Elevance Health dropped 5.1% despite reporting stronger profit and revenue than expected. The health insurer gave a forecast for earnings this year that fell short of...