MBTA officials took a decisive step Wednesday toward an unprecedented, roughly month-long shutdown of the Orange Line that will upend commuting for tens of thousands of commuters and the entire greater Boston region starting this month.
The MBTA's Board of Directors, in a special meeting, unanimously approved a contract authorizing up to $37 million on shuttle bus service to replace trains across the Orange Line, a major subway artery that carries more than 100,000 riders.
The contract language overseers approved calls for the shuttle buses to run from "on or about Aug. 19, 2022 through Sept. 18, 2022." An MBTA spokesperson confirmed after the meeting those are the dates planned for the shutdown.
In a press conference, Gov. Charlie Baker along with MBTA General Manager Steve Poftak said when service reopens, the Orange Line will be running more new trains.
"This is an unprecedented service diversion for the MBTA," Poftak said. "We have never shut down an entire line in this way in order to make sweeping improvements, but we're doing this because it's the fastest, most efficient way to deliver the benefits to our customers."
The plan had not been floated publicly before the Boston Globe reported Tuesday night that MBTA leaders were seriously considering a 30-day Orange Line shutdown amid myriad safety problems and federal orders to address long-delayed maintenance.
"The idea here is that by shutting down a line in its entirety, it allows us to do multiple projects, it allows us round-the-clock access," said Poftak, noting that a federal investigation slamming the T's safety failures noted that crews often have limited windows in which to perform maintenance.
MBTA board members approved spending between $27 million and $37 million on the contract with A Yankee Line, Inc., which will provide up to 200 shuttle buses at peak hours to replace subway service. Poftak told board members the shuttle buses would run free of fares for riders.
It's not clear how much the total project will cost once the maintenance price tag is incorporated. An $11.3 billion infrastructure bond bill on Baker's desk makes $400 million available for the MBTA to respond to the Federal Transit Administration's safety directives.
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MBTA will shut down Orange Line trains for a month - WBUR News
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