Green Line Extension to Medford & Union Sq

There is definitely some grumbling about our station in East Somerville (how done it looks, why can't it open, why do we need to wait for gilman, etc).

Waiting for the GLX is this neighborhood's favorite spectator sport at this point, I'm not sure what the old timers are going to argue about once it's finally open.
 
Badusername said:
Anyone know how long a “soft launch” typically lasts? I assume this means we’re on track for March, but when will we have enough information to speculate about early March vs late March?
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"Soft launch" would indicate that the primary task has shifted to ride simulation (namely: crew qualifications) more than infrastructure (track, signal, electrical) testing. Qualifications would be one of the last steps, since the rides would have to more closely resemble real trip movements (e.g. revenue service, deadheads to/from the yard, contingency movements) rather than simply poking around the new digs for data-collection purposes...and they'd have to be more frequently-run to give large enough chunk of the operator pool a crack at qualifications.


The pics & vids lately also show a much wider variety of cars giving it a try, which is a change. In the early going they were doing single cars, one from each type...usually the same captive few cars doing all the testing. Now they seem to be grabbing them at-will (see in the last vid where one of the active adwrap cars is shown taking a spin).
 
F-Line to Dudley said:
The pics & vids lately also show a much wider variety of cars giving it a try, which is a change. In the early going they were doing single cars, one from each type...usually the same captive few cars doing all the testing. Now they seem to be grabbing them at-will (see in the last vid where one of the active adwrap cars is shown taking a spin).
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The narrator states that they're now having every E train deadhead out to Union and back. Which of course means the Lechmere Viaduct is open for business again; originally they were testing with a couple of vehicles they'd trucked over to the maintenance facility. It does raise the question of why they're not putting Science Park/West End back in service yet, however.
Charlie_mta said:
So happy that the Lechmere Viaduct was repaired and restored. The trains appear to be going rather slowly. Will they be able to go faster than this on the Lechmere Viaduct?
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I assume they're qualifying the track as well as the operators and that's why they're taking it slow. Either that or the operators are just used to going slow on the viaduct. :)
 
ceo said:
The narrator states that they're now having every E train deadhead out to Union and back. Which of course means the Lechmere Viaduct is open for business again; originally they were testing with a couple of vehicles they'd trucked over to the maintenance facility. It does raise the question of why they're not putting Science Park/West End back in service yet, however.

I assume they're qualifying the track as well as the operators and that's why they're taking it slow. Either that or the operators are just used to going slow on the viaduct. :)
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I doubt it's worth the effort to reactivate Science Park separately from the upcoming Union Square Branch opening. They're still testing the viaduct track, so there may be a need for unscheduled tweaking, trains going out of service at North Station, etc. It's also always been a low-ridership station (873 daily pre-pandemic) and would generate very little now, so there's not a pressing need to open it immediately. Side note, the station *does* have potential, but it badly needs the long-delayed footbridge.

Technical documents imply (see here) that the viaduct will be raised to 50 mph. Certainly I would expect higher than 25 mph.
 
ceo said:
The narrator states that they're now having every E train deadhead out to Union and back. Which of course means the Lechmere Viaduct is open for business again; originally they were testing with a couple of vehicles they'd trucked over to the maintenance facility. It does raise the question of why they're not putting Science Park/West End back in service yet, however.
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They’ve been doing accessibility upgrades on Science Park over the last couple weeks, so that would also explain the lack of reopening. (Source)
 
F-Line to Dudley said:
"Soft launch" would indicate that the primary task has shifted to ride simulation (namely: crew qualifications) more than infrastructure (track, signal, electrical) testing. Qualifications would be one of the last steps, since the rides would have to more closely resemble real trip movements (e.g. revenue service, deadheads to/from the yard, contingency movements) rather than simply poking around the new digs for data-collection purposes...and they'd have to be more frequently-run to give large enough chunk of the operator pool a crack at qualifications.


The pics & vids lately also show a much wider variety of cars giving it a try, which is a change. In the early going they were doing single cars, one from each type...usually the same captive few cars doing all the testing. Now they seem to be grabbing them at-will (see in the last vid where one of the active adwrap cars is shown taking a spin).
Click to expand...
At one of the GLX community board meetings, the MBTA folks said something about 30 days no-fault testing for "in service" trains. Which, I think means the service from North Station without passengers. So, I suppose that this means maybe we'll begin to see some movement in about 2 or 3 weeks time? It looks like 1/15 was around the time that they began running "in service" without pax.

Also, "soft launch" seems like the wrong term - other "soft launches" usually serve clients/customers while not being at full capacity - i.e. restaurant or retail "soft launches". While, this is happening without actual passengers.

Meanwhile, this is a "safety test" or what I've recently learned the term in French is "marche a blanc". Perhaps, this is the "red/yellow/green launch" - the individual car testing was the red/orange testing, this current is the yellow testing, and a true soft launch would be a green test?
 
The EGE said:
I doubt it's worth the effort to reactivate Science Park separately from the upcoming Union Square Branch opening. They're still testing the viaduct track, so there may be a need for unscheduled tweaking, trains going out of service at North Station, etc. It's also always been a low-ridership station (873 daily pre-pandemic) and would generate very little now, so there's not a pressing need to open it immediately. Side note, the station *does* have potential, but it badly needs the long-delayed footbridge.

Technical documents imply (see here) that the viaduct will be raised to 50 mph. Certainly I would expect higher than 25 mph.
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That is pretty impressive. Having done the Park St to Lechmere dance quite regularly pre-pandemic, I averaged for just that leg as ~20 minutes, and now the projection is 20-ish minutes Park to Tufts - freaking awesome. From what I remember the viaduct really was a limiting factor, both with speed limits but also capacity. I believe weight wise it got to the point where it could only support a single trolley (well, double trolley) in each direction at a time, which really slowed things down.
 
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as02143 said:
At one of the GLX community board meetings, the MBTA folks said something about 30 days no-fault testing for "in service" trains. Which, I think means the service from North Station without passengers. So, I suppose that this means maybe we'll begin to see some movement in about 2 or 3 weeks time? It looks like 1/15 was around the time that they began running "in service" without pax.

Also, "soft launch" seems like the wrong term - other "soft launches" usually serve clients/customers while not being at full capacity - i.e. restaurant or retail "soft launches". While, this is happening without actual passengers.

Meanwhile, this is a "safety test" or what I've recently learned the term in French is "marche a blanc". Perhaps, this is the "red/yellow/green launch" - the individual car testing was the red/orange testing, this current is the yellow testing, and a true soft launch would be a green test?
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The MBTA Board of Directors intends to give a GLX Project Update at their meeting tomorrow: https://cdn.mbta.com/sites/default/files/2022-01/2022-01-27-mbta-board-of-directors-agenda.pdf
 
WestMedford said:
The MBTA Board of Directors intends to give a GLX Project Update at their meeting tomorrow: https://cdn.mbta.com/sites/default/files/2022-01/2022-01-27-mbta-board-of-directors-agenda.pdf
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Did anyone attend this meeting or know what the update is? I found this article posted today which says:
“The Union Branch connecting Union Square to Lechmere and North Station is expected to be servicing the public by spring of 2022,” McCarthy wrote in an email to the Daily. However, McCarthy also explained that the Medford Branch will not be completed until summer 2022.
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The “summer 2022” comment seems to confirm the suspected delay of the Medford branch beyond May.
 
Badusername said:
Did anyone attend this meeting or know what the update is? I found this article posted today which says:

The “summer 2022” comment seems to confirm the suspected delay of the Medford branch beyond May.
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A brief skim of the recording (1hr59min mark, roughly) is Mar 2022 still listed for Union Sq, Medford Branch is listed just as "in the coming months (schedule under review)"

I did not listen to the remarks made in depth to know if there was more schedule insight offered than in the presented slides.
 
They likely won't have a definitive schedule for the Medford Branch before we get closer to the Union Square branch opening. I believe they're using a "lessons learned" approach on the work (with unforeseen working conditions/capabilities) in the substations to determine how to handle the Medford Branch substations, which were announced as the original culprit for the delay to March. So, your guess on the timeline is almost as good as their's, until they have more information.
 
This could be a "tell" regarding the timing of the Union Square opening: From this, I'd guess sometime after March 13th.

Orange and Green Lines’ Service Impacted as Government Center Garage Demolition Begins | Updates | MBTA

Official website of the MBTA -- schedules, maps, and fare information for Greater Boston's public transportation system, including subway, commuter rail, bus routes, and boat lines.
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Orange and Green Lines’ Service Impacted as Government Center Garage Demolition Begins
Updated on January 27, 2022
During three weekends in February and March, the Government Center Garage will be demolished for mixed-use development. To keep riders and drivers safe during demolition, Orange Line and Green Line trains will not travel in the tunnels running underneath the garage.
During demolition weekends, shuttles will provide alternate service and bus service will not be impacted. Additional dates may be added, please check back here for details.......

Green Line Service Impacts
Government Center – Lechmere
Map segment showing section of Green Line affected during Government Center garage demolition weekends. At left is green arrow pointing left representing unaffected service areas. It's labeled Copley and West. To its right is a dotted line showing the shuttle route from Government Center at left to Lechmere at right. Between the two are stops at Haymarket, North Station, and Science Park, and West End.

Weekends February 5 – 6, 19 – 20, and March 12 – 13
During these weekends:
Shuttle runs all day Saturdays and Sundays between Government Center and Lechmere
C and E Branch train service ends at Government Center
B and D Branch train service ends at Park Street
To connect to the shuttles at Government Center, B and D Branch riders can take a C or E Branch train between Park Street and Government Center
 
Just adding this write-up from the State House News Service that reinforces suggestion the Branch 2 opening date will slip later into the year:
The single-stop Union Square Branch and a renovated Lechmere Station are set to open in March.
The second branch of the extension, which includes five total stops between East Somerville and Medford’s Tufts University, will be “not too far after that,” GLX Project Manager John Dalton said while presenting a slide that described the start of service on that segment as “under review.”
“We’re still kind of finalizing the schedule, getting that last bit of work done and getting the real testing and commissioning process off the ground,” Dalton told the MBTA Board. “We will soon be talking about when we will be getting Branch 2 in service.”
 
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