The Union Square branch of the Green Line will shut down for six weeks this summer, the latest in a series of service diversions that one transit advocate says have been poorly executed by the MBTA.
Train service between Lechmere and Union Square stations, part of a Green Line Extension project that was completed last December, will be suspended from July 18 to Aug. 28, to allow for “critical repair work” by MassDOT on the Squires Bridge, the MBTA said in a Thursday statement.
The diversion, one of several construction projects impacting Green Line service this summer, is necessary, the T said, because the bridge “crosses over tracks near Union Square station.”
Jarred Johnson, executive director of TransitMatters, sharply criticized the latest prolonged shutdown, saying in a Thursday tweet, “It’s past time for the Healey administration to be transparent about WTF the Baker administration was doing with the $8 billion in capital funds spent to have a system so degraded.”
“What happened during the (Orange Line) shutdown?” Johnson added. “Was the GLX opening rushed so that Baker could open it during his tenure?”
In an interview, Johnson said riders are owed an explanation as to whether the work that will be conducted over the next two months could have been incorporated into the Green Line Extension project.
“People have a total lack of trust in the agency,” Johnson said. “The T’s diversions have not been good. The T does not run good service on connecting lines. The T has poor signage and information, and when it comes to these diversions, also, people have no faith that it’s actually going to end on Aug. 28.”
The MBTA deferred comment to MassDOT spokesperson Jacquelyn Goddard, who said the upcoming work on Squires Bridge is part of a “MassDOT Highway Division 4 project.”
“The scope of work is to perform repairs to specific localized areas of six steel beams that have deteriorated and need to be addressed to maintain the structural capacity of Squires Bridge,” Goddard said in a statement. “The location of the overhead catenary systems on the underside of the bridge for the Green Line Extension conflicts with the repair locations.”
In order to perform the repairs, Goddard said construction crews have to de-energize and temporarily move the catenary system out of the way, “to allow MassDOT’s contractor safe and uninterrupted access.”
“Through the collaborative planning of MassDOT Highway and the MBTA, the duration of the overall effort is projected to require six weeks of diversion,” Goddard said.
Johnson estimated that by the time this diversion is over, parts of the Green Line Extension, which stretches to Union Square in Somerville and Tufts University in Medford, will have been closed for roughly 100 days.
During last summer’s 30-day Orange Line shutdown, the Green Line was closed for four weeks between Government Center and Union Square stations. Earlier this month, the T diverted service on both GLX branches for two weekends.
The diversions, which have become more frequent as the T works to comply with federal directives that pointed to years of neglected track maintenance, are pushing people off of public transit and into cars, and impacting their housing decisions, Johnson said.
This particular closure also represents a “radical shift” from prior diversions, in terms of the MBTA not offering alternative bus shuttle service, Johnson said.
This adds to the confusion experienced by riders, many of whom don’t check the T’s website or social media pages regularly, and therefore aren’t often aware of plans to implement diversions on their typical routes, he added.
The MBTA is telling riders to take regular bus service during the 42-day closure. Those heading from Union Square station can board Route 86 at Somerville Avenue and Route 91 on Prospect Street, from the Union Square to East Somerville station areas for continued service on the Medford/Tufts branch.
Green Line riders headed to Union Square station can instead board Medford/Tufts branch service to East Somerville station, and then utilize Route 86 and 91 bus service at Washington and Tufts streets, to get to the Union Square area.
Commuters can also take Route 87 bus service by boarding at Lechmere station, and exiting in the Union Square area at Somerville and Stone avenues, the T said.
The diversion is one of several that will impact service on the Green Line in July and August.
The T reiterated last week’s announcement that B Branch service between Kenmore and Boston College stations will be shut down for 12 days, from July 17-28, while construction crews repair a stretch of defective track that led to a derailment earlier this month.
Trolley service will also be suspended between Boston University East and Haymarket stations on the B Branch, Saint Mary’s Street and Haymarket stations on the C Branch, Fenway and North stations on the D Branch, and Heath Street and North stations on the E Branch, from July 15-16.
Further, the continued demolition of the Government Center Garage will suspend Green Line service between North and Government Center stations, from July 29 to Aug. 9, the T said.
Orange Line trains will bypass Haymarket station during that time.
The T is also planning evening diversions on the Red Line, between JFK/UMass and North Quincy stations, from July 11-13 and July 20; and between JFK/UMass and Braintree stations on July 21 and the weekend of July 22-23 to address speed restrictions.
A T spokesperson said, “The MBTA apologizes for the inconvenience of these scheduled service changes, and appreciates the understanding and patience of riders as this critical work to maintain, upgrade and modernize the system takes place.”