BOSTON — The Orange and Red lines will be the focus of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority’s ongoing track repair work for its rapid transit lines in June, while six commuter rail lines will also see service disruptions.
Three outages planned on Orange Line
On the Orange Line, a 10-day closure between Wellington and Back Bay is slated to begin next Tuesday, May 28, and continue through June 6, while a weekend outage is planned between North Station and Oak Grove June 7-9, and another extended closure is scheduled between Wellington and North Station June 22-30.
During the Wellington-Back Bay outage, the MBTA will offer shuttle buses between Wellington and North Station. Green Line service also offers an alternative between North Station and Copley, while the Haverhill commuter rail line is an alternative between Oak Grove, Malden Center, and North Station. This outage is part of both the MBTA Track Improvement Program, addressing a backlog of speed restrictions, and the Maffa Way/Mystic Avenue Bridge Superstructure Replacement project.
The North Station-Oak Grove shutdown will begin at approximately 8:45 p.m. on June 7 and continue all day June 8-9. Free shuttle buses will replace rail service, and fair-free service will be offered on the Haverhill commuter line between Oak Grove and North Station.
The nine-day Wellington-North Station shutdown is also part of the Maffa Way/Mystic Avenue bridge project and the Track Improvement Program. Free shuttle buses will operate along the suspended portion of the line, and the Haverhill commuter line is again an alternative.
Weekend work planned on Red Line
Five weekend outages are planned on the Red Line: between Alewife and Harvard on June 1-2 and June 29-30; between Broadway and Braintree June 8-9 and June 15-16; and closing the outbound/northbound platform at Kendall/MIT June 28-30.
In the first two cases, shuttle service will replace all stops on the closed portions of the line. During the Alewife-Harvard closures, Bus Route 77 will be fare-free, and the Fitchburg commuter rail line will be fare free between Porter and North Station. For the Broadway-Braintree closures, commuter rail express shuttle bus service will operate between South Station and Braintree; regular Red Line service will operate on the Ashmont Branch between JFK/UMass and Ashmont.
The Broadway-Braintree outage is to accommodate the Dorchester Avenue Bridge Replacement Project, as well as the Track Improvement Program.
For the platform closure at Kendall/MIT, outbound/northbound passengers disembarking at Kendall/MIT should travel to Central, then take an inbound/southbound train back to Kendall/MIT. Those departing from Kendall/MIT should take an inbound/southbound train to Charles/MGH, then switch to an outbound/northbound train.
Work scheduled on multiple commuter lines
Six commuter lines will see weekend disruptions. The Kingston, Middleborough, and Greenbush lines will have outages June 8-9 and June 15-16, also because of the Dorchester Bridge Replacement Project. Shuttle buses will replace all trains between South Station and Braintree, while express shuttles will run directly between those two stations.
On the Needham Line, weekend outages are planned between South Station and Needham Heights June 1-2, June 8-9, and June 28-July 1. Shuttle buses will operate between Needham Heights and Newton Highlights on the Green Line D branch and Needham Heights and Forest Hills on the Orange Line. Monthly commuter rail passes will be honored on the Green Line D and Orange Line.
And, on the Kingston line, service will be suspended between Kingston and Halifax the weekend of June 22-23. Shuttle buses will operate between those stations.
Finally, a construction schedule is now in effect on the Haverhill line through the end of summer. That schedule is available here.
Additional information on all changes is available at the MBTA website.
