BOSTON — A 10-day shutdown of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority’s Red Line between the Alewife and Harvard stations is the centerpiece of MBTA’s plans for major maintenance projects in February, the latest phase in a more than year-long effort to eliminate the accumulated slow orders on the agency’s rail transit system. Also, an 18-day shutdown on portions of the Green Line is slated to begin later in the month, and weekend shutdowns are slated on two commuter rail lines.
The Red Line shutdown is set for Feb. 5-14. During the same 10-day period, an evening suspension of service will be extended an additional four stations toward downtown, between the Harvard and Park Street stations, meaning the Red Line will be shut down from 8:45 p.m. from Park Street to Alewife. Free, accessible shuttle bus service will replace the rail operation, while commuter rail service will be free on the Fitchburg line between Porter and North Station. On the remaining portion of the Red Line, trains will operate with decreased frequency.
Also scheduled is a weekend shutdown of the Red Line between Harvard and Broadway on Feb. 24-25, and a suspension of Orange Line operations between Forest Hills and Ruggles the weekend of Feb. 17-18.
The Green Line shutdown, set for Feb. 20-March 8, will affect the B branch between Copley and Babcock Street; the C branch between Copley and Cleveland Circle, and the D branch between Copley and Brookline Hills. Information for riders on transportation alternatives is available here.
As of Thursday, Jan. 25, there are 143 speed restrictions on the MBTA rail transit network, including 56 on the Red Line and 34 on the Green Line.
The commuter-rail service suspensions are set for the Fitchburg line, between Littleton/Route 495 and Alewife on Feb. 304, and the Lowell line in its entirely on Feb. 10-11. The commuter-line outages are to perform Automatic Train Control work.
More information on all the planned maintenance work is available here.
