MBTA: Buses to replace Braintree branch for 16 nights in May
BOSTON – A batch of weekend and nighttime closures will hit segments of the Red Line in May to give MBTA crews more time to perform maintenance and repairs aimed at lifting speed restrictions, the T announced Monday.
MBTA officials rolled out a schedule of shutdowns and diversions for next month affecting all four major subway lines and several commuter rail lines.
Much of the work planned for the Red Line is related to slow zones, which today cover about 26% of the entire line, which stretches from Cambridge to Braintree and Mattapan.
Subway service on the Red Line will go offline between JFK/UMass and Braintree stations at about 8:45 p.m. May 8-12, 15-19, 22-25 and 30-31. Shuttle buses will replace trains during those spans.
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The MBTA said the series of evening closures will "allow MBTA crews to perform critical rail and tie replacement work on the Braintree branch that will alleviate speed restrictions."
On the weekends of May 13-14 and May 20-21, buses will replace service between between Broadway and Braintree and between Broadway and Ashmont. Those closures will allow crews to work on replacing the Ashmont branch's Savin Hill Bridge and perform tie and rail replacement on the Braintree branch, the T said.
Shuttle buses will replace Red Line trains between Park Street and JFK/UMass stations on May 6 and 7, work the T similarly said will free up time for "critical rail and tie replacement work to alleviate speed restrictions in this area."
For commuter rail riders, shuttle buses will replace trains between Braintree and South Station on the Greenbush, Kingston/Plymouth and Middleboro/Lakeville lines the weekend of May 13-14.
On the weekend of May 20-21, shuttle buses will replace commuter trains between Braintree and South Station on the Greenbush, Kingston/Plymouth and Middleboro/Lakeville lines. Shuttle buses will also replace trains between Bridgewater and Middleboro/Lakeville on the Middleboro/Lakeville Line.
The MBTA on Monday also kicked off eight nights of early-evening closures on the Blue Line, with train service set to stop at about 8 p.m. Monday through Thursday this week and then again each night from May 1-4.
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General Manager Phil Eng estimated last week that those closures would allow the T to reduce the amount of railway subject to slow zones from 44% now to 28% by the end of May. MBTA officials did not offer a similar projection for the new Red Line plans.
On the rest of the subway system, the MBTA said Orange Line trains will bypass Haymarket Station on the weekends of May 13-14 and May 20-21. Green Line service on those same days will be suspended between North Station and Government Center. In both cases, the T attributed the changes to ongoing demolition of the Government Center Garage by a private developer, HYM Construction.
The Green Line is set for more shifts the weekend of May 27-28 to allow for track work. B branch trains will bypass Kenmore Station, the entire C branch from Cleveland Circle to Copley will be replaced with shuttle buses, and buses will also replace D branch service between Fenway and Copley.
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This article originally appeared on The Patriot Ledger: Red Line riders to Quincy, Braintree hit with nighttime shutdowns
