Photo: James Rojas/WBZ NewsRadio
BOSTON (WBZ NewsRadio) — If the Orange Line is part of your travel plans this week, prepare for shutdowns and route changes due to signal upgrades.
Service is suspended from Back Bay to Forest Hills due to the upgrades. The improvements aim to provide faster service and reduce crowding on the trains in the future. It will also support an expansion of the fleet, allowing space for 30,000 more riders per day.
The shutdown has been in the works for the 120-year-old line, but Bostonians like Ray just discovered the changes for the Orange Line route.
"I just found out. And they just recently did this, so I'm like, again?"
During the suspension, train service will be replaced with free shuttle buses. While Ray expressed frustration about having to catch the bus, Brian was more accepting of the changes.
"The T is always faster, usually, but the shuttle bus is better than it used to be."
Bus route 39 will also be fare-free during the services upgrades.
According to the MBTA's construction calendar, this will be the last weekday shutdown of the Orange Line for 2025. The shutdown will extend to North Station over the weekend. The Red, Green, and Blue Lines have week-long planned closures later this year.
WBZ NewsRadio's James Rojas (@JamesRojasMMJ) reports.