Orange Line Evening Diversions Starting May 19

Buses will replace trains five nights a week for a month from mid-May through mid-June.

As work continues on the Orange Line's station at Assembly Square in Somerville, service will be impacted five nights a week for a month starting May 19. According to the MBTA website, buses will replace trains between Oak Grove and Sullivan Square stations starting at 9 p.m. each Sunday through Thursday from May 19 to June 21.  The diversions will last until the end of service, according to the MBTA. All stops will be serviced by buses between Oak Grove and Sullivan Square, including Medford's Wellington Station. There will be no diversion on Sunday, May 26, due to the Memorial Day holiday.

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Tonight: Green Line Extension Open House

Tour the Green Line Extension Team's new office, get updates about the project and ask questions at an open house in downtown Boston.

The Green Line Extension Team has a new office in downtown Boston, and the public is invited to check it out at an open house Thursday evening. The office, at 100 Summer St., will be home to MBTA staff, members of the HDR/Gilbane program management team, members of the design team, and representatives from the construction management/general contractor team—in short, all the folks who collaborate on the Green Line Extension project. According to an announcement from the Green Line Extension Team, members of the public are invited to tour the new office, meet staff, get updates about the project and ask questions. The open house is from 5 p.m. to 7 p.m., and there's a project update presentation at 6 p.m., the announcement says.

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Reminder: Red Line Bus Diversions This Weekend

Buses will replace trains between Harvard and Alewife on Saturday and Sunday.

'Orange Line Report' Recommends Priorities for MBTA Line

The report reveals that 42 percent of residents in the Orange Line corridor are people of color, that 20 percent of households live in poverty, and that the corridor is ripe for development.

The Metropolitan Area Planning Council Tuesday released a study called the "Orange Line Opportunity Corridor Report." The report looks at the demographics, economy and infrastructure of the MBTA line, which stretches from Malden, through Somerville, into downtown Boston, Roxbury and Jamaica Plain. The MBTA is currently building a new Orange Line Station in Somerville's Assembly Square that is expected to open in 2014. It's the fist new MBTA station built since 1987. The report makes a number of observations and recommendations about the Orange Line. For instance: The report calls for investing in the Orange Line's infrastructure, encouraging large-scale land acquisition for development, and mitigating displacement of at-risk residents …

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Somerville Reps Split on Transportation Financing Vote

"The House bill just doesn't cut it," said Rep. Carl Sciortino. Said Rep. Timothy Toomey, "I could not justify voting no with the threat of fare increases and service cuts looming over the commuters, families, and seniors."

Two of Somerville's state representatives voted against a $500 transportation financing bill Monday; one voted for it. Rep. Carl Sciortino, who also represents parts of Medford, explained why he voted against the bill, saying, "It's clearly inadequate to meet the needs of the commonwealth going forward." "[A transportation bill] is a rare opportunity to make generational investments, and the House bill just doesn't cut it," he said. To put Sciortino's comments in context, the bill passed Monday by the House was at odds with a more ambitious proposal put forth by Gov. Deval Patrick, who called for $1.9 billion in new revenue to fund transportation and education initiatives in the state. Patrick had said he would veto the $500 million bill. …

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Mass. Tax Plans: Too Much, Too Soon? Or Too Little, Too Slow?

Should the state forge ahead with Gov. Deval Patrick's bold plan to invest now? Or should it follow the Legislature leadership's proposal to address the bottom line before embarking on bigger initiatives?

Massachusetts legislators this week answered Gov. Deval Patrick's ambitious plan to raise $1.9 billion for transportation and education with a $500 million plan of their own, which says the governor is asking for too much, too soon as the Bay State shakes off the effects of the Great Recession. Who's right? Should the state forge ahead in a bold plan to invest now? Or should it cautiously address the bottom line before embarking on bigger initiatives? While Patrick's plan includes funding for both the state transportation system and increased education funding from preschool through college, House and Senate lawmakers eschew new revenue for education, focusing solely on closing the transportation budget gap over the next five years. The …

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Andrew Sylvia

9:26 pm on Tuesday, April 9, 2013

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When's The Next Red Line Bus Diversion?

Periodic bus diversions will allow crews to conduct track, signal and power work in the subway tunnel.

Buses will replace Red Line trains between Harvard Station and Alewife the weekend of April 13 and 14, according to the MBTA. The bus diversions will allow workers to perform track, power and signal work as part of the Red Line Floating Slab Project—part of a nearly $35 million series of improvements to the tunnel, which opened in 1985 and is in need of substantial repairs.  The improvements, with their occasional bus diversions, are expected to be conducted into 2016. On April 13 and 14,  buses, not trains, will make stops at Harvard, Porter, Davis and Alewife stations. All buses will be accessible for people with disabilities, the transit authority's website says. Normal service is expected to resume Monday, April 15. Month of Weekend …

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State Wants Green Line Extension Lawsuit Dismissed

In a motion, state Attorney General claims Medford couple didn't explain how project would hurt them in their suit.

The Commonwealth is attempting to have a recent lawsuit brought against the proposed Green Line Extension thrown out of court. According to court documents, the state Attorney General filed a motion last Friday in U.S. District Court to dismiss the suit brought by Dr. William Wood and Carolyn Rosen of West Medford back in January on behalf of their group, the Green Line Advisory Group of Medford (GLAM). The state Department of Transportation is listed as the defendant in the case. According to the filing, the state is arguing for dismissal based on a "lack of subject matter jurisdiction and failure to state a claim upon which relief may be granted." In addition, the state argues GLAM has failed "to allege facts sufficient to demonstrate …

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Survey: Riders Want Late-Night MBTA Service

The Boston Globe reports that 85 percent of those who responded to a survey on late-night MBTA service would be willing to wait at least 10 to 19 minutes for a bus or train.

A recent survey confirms what most of Boston was already thinking: Residents want late-night MBTA service. The Boston Globe reported Friday that about 26,000 people responded to a survey saying they are in favor of late-night bus or train service in Boston. Over 85 percent of respondents said they would be willing to wait 10 to 19 minutes for a late-night bus or train, and half said they’d pay double the fare, according to the Globe. As MBTA officials scramble to close a $117 budget gap for fiscal year 2014, and legislators mull Gov. Deval Patrick’s 21st Century Transportation Plan, the T has said its not making late-night service a priority. MBTA spokesman Joe Pesaturo said, in a Feb. 21 email, that until the state decides to implement …

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Future Deficit Forces T into Tough Choices

Fare hikes and service cuts are a few options T officials proposed in an effort to close the $130 million budget deficit in 2014.

MBTA officials have proposed service cuts and fare increases to deal with a projected $130 million budget deficit for fiscal-year 2014—if, that is, there is no increase in funding from the state. Director of strategic initiatives for the MBTA, Charles Planck, said at a MBTA finance committee meeting that in order to close the budget gap, T fares would need to go up 33 percent, which means subway fares would move up from $2 to $2.60, The Boston Globe reported Wednesday. There was also talk at the meeting of a 15 percent fare increase coupled with the possible elimination of up to 30 bus routes, according to the Globe. Gov. Deval Patrick unveiled an ambitious transportation plan in February that would potentially raise $1.02 billion per year…

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