MBTA completes E Branch construction

MBTA

MBTA has completed a marathon work effort on the Green Line E Branch.

On Tuesday at 2:30 PM, at the Thea and James M. Stoneman Centennial Park near the reconstructed Francis Street and Huntington Avenue intersection adjacent to the E Branch, Transportation Secretary and CEO Jamey Tesler, MBTA General Manager Steve Poftak, MASCO President and CEO David Sweeney, and Mission Hill Main Streets Executive Director Ellen Walker will mark the successful completion of accelerated Green Line E Branch work. The scope of work included 4,600 feet of track replacement, improvements to 10 pedestrian crossings, and upgrades at the intersection of Huntington Avenue with Tremont Street and Francis Street.

This is a video/photo opportunity of the work that was completed, followed by a project briefing and informal remarks by Secretary Tesler and General Manager Poftak.

For nearly the entire month of August, crews worked around the clock all day, every day to replace outdated track ties, ballast, and rail as well as pavement on the Green Line E Branch between South Huntington Avenue and Brigham Circle Station. In mid-August, the decision was made to also complete about 600 additional feet of track renewal and crosswalk improvements from 78 South Huntington Avenue to Heath Street. The Route 39 bus was free for riders boarding along the E Branch corridor from Heath Street to Brigham Circle during the Green Line Transformation (GLT) program’s accelerated 27 days of work.

The program completed 115% of the planned project scope, including a total of 4,600 feet of track replacement and complete added track replacement near Heath Street Station. Since 2019, GLT has replaced more than 14,000 feet of track on the E Branch alone. This accelerated approach was also successfully used in 2020 when GLT completed four weeks of full access improvements on the E Branch, primarily from Northeastern University to Brigham Circle. Remaining surface track to be replaced on the E Branch includes approximately 3,600 feet of track work at Northeastern Station and between Longwood Station and Brigham Circle Station.

More information can be found at mbta.com/GLintersections.

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