MBTA’s Dorchester Ave Bridge Opens Sept. 23
Written by Jennifer McLawhorn, Managing Editor
The MBTA minimized ridership impact by executing strategic work activities over multiple weekend blocks in 2024. Pictured above was the erection of structural steel girders in May 2024. Image and caption courtesy of MBTA.
BOSTON - The MBTA announced the Dorchester Avenue Bridge will open at 4:00am on September 23, 2024.
The bridge is located between Von Hillern and Kemp Streets and carry vehicles over the Red Line, the Old Colony Commuter Rail, and the Cabot Yard maintenance tracks. In 1925, the bridge was erected before being rehabilitated in 1975. The project to replace the bridge started in summer of 2022 and had a construction cost of $34.5 million. The entire bridge was replaced along with the Red Line tunnel roof. The Von Hillern Street retaining wall was also rehabilitated in order to maintain its structural integrity.
As a result, the MBTA says its Route 18 bus service will go back to its typical route between Columbia Road and Andrew station on September 25th. There are no routing changes planned between Ashmont station and Columbia Road at the time of reporting.
Transportation Secretary and CEO Monica Tibbits-Nutt said, “The Dorchester Avenue Bridge Replacement Project is an example of the MBTA delivering on major projects which benefit all members of the traveling public. . . We have a leadership team and workforce at the MBTA who have been successfully completing projects that are part of our core infrastructure and our public transportation system is getting rebuilt so that it is safer for all users.”
MBTA General Manager and CEO Phillip Eng said, “We are pleased to announce the completion of Dorchester Avenue Bridge. We know how important Dorchester Avenue is to the community and I’m proud of the MBTA team that made this a priority and got it done. . . This new bridge enhances safety for all that use it and ensures safety of the Red Line and Commuter Rail below. This is another important step forward as we rebuild our infrastructure to give the public we serve a safe, reliable transportation system that they deserve.”
