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Building A Better T: Fourth of 6 Weekend Orange Line Diversions Starts Tonight; Update on Last Weekend's Shutdown

Posted on October 25, 2019

Today the MBTA reminded customers that weekend Orange Line service between Sullivan Square and Tufts Medical Center Stations will again be suspended this weekend beginning at 8:45 PM tonight through to the start of service on Monday, October 28.

Diagram of the Orange and Green lines. No train service between Sullivan Square and Tufts Medical Center. Shuttles run between Sullivan Square and Haymarket, where you can switch to the Green Line. Three Orange Line stations are not served at all (by either train or shuttle): State, Downtown Crossing, and Chinatown.

During these weekend shutdowns, bus shuttles are provided between Sullivan Square and Haymarket Stations, with no shuttle service to Orange Line stations at State, Downtown Crossing, and Chinatown. Extra weekend Commuter Rail service (Saturdays only) is also operating between Forest Hills and South Station. Customers can find more information on alternate travel options at mbta.com/OLwork.

Following last weekend’s incident that required the diversion in service to last into Monday, the MBTA has taken a number of steps to ensure regularly scheduled Orange Line service resumes on Monday morning.   

With safety as the most critical priority, several actions have been implemented, including:

  • Additional pieces of heavy equipment will be staged at key locations to assist construction vehicles, if necessary;
  • On-site MBTA Safety staff will be increased and will continue to maintain a presence within the work zone at all times during the course of the shutdown;
  • On-site MBTA project management staff will also be increased to ensure construction activities occur without impacting the start of regular Orange Line service Monday morning; 
  • Enhanced protocols will be put in place for staging equipment and for moving vehicles throughout the work zone. 

2019 Capital Acceleration Plan

This suspension of Orange Line service is the fourth of 6 consecutive weekends and is part of the MBTA’s 2019 Capital Acceleration Plan, which allows the MBTA to expedite upgrades to core infrastructure and to perform maintenance activities. Last weekend’s shutdown and the 3 more to come allow the MBTA to complete work on the Orange Line level of these stations almost a year earlier than previously planned. MBTA crews and contractors also continue to replace pit track in closed Orange Line stations; perform a variety of station repairs to platforms, elevators, stairways, and fare equipment; perform track and power maintenance in tunnels; and perform tunnel debris clean-up work, reducing the risk of smoke and fire hazards.

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