GREEN LINE EXTENSION WORK BEGINS,
Commuters traveling to and from Fitchburg will need to jump onto the Red Line at Porter Square to reach North Station over this and the next six weekends as transit workers begin laying the groundwork for the highly anticipated Green Line Extension.
The last leg of the Fitchburg line between Somerville and North Station will be closed off as crews conduct technical borings into the ground, relocate a complex commuter rail switching network, and remove trees and vegetation, according to an update from the MBTA.
“The boring work is a critical part of learning the subsurface soil and rock conditions prior to construction” of the $2.2 billion project, said MBTA spokesman Joe Pesaturo. Those evaluations will be used “to design viaduct foundations, retaining walls and bridge abutments.”
Pesaturo said the modified service on the Fitchburg line would be confined to weekends and would “not impact weekday commuter rail service.” The MBTA said travelers on the on the Fitchburg line should build an extra 30 minutes into their commute to make the transfers to get to North Station. In addition to the ground evaluations, Pesaturo said, crews would begin the relocation of a commuter rail switch network in the coming weeks. “Other work this and coming weekends (includes) shifting a major commuter rail interlocking to accommodate the Green Line Extension right-of-way,” Pesaturo said. “The relocation effort (of track switches) is complex work.”
The project extending the Green Line through Somerville to Medford is expected to be completed by December 2022.