Green Line Extension to Medford & Union Sq

- based on this, it can't be long now before they have to take the corresponding space that's currently used as the "back way out" of the car wash at Titan Gas (https://goo.gl/maps/amDpjepRHMER2uR79) I suppose they're being merciful to Titan by delaying this taking (or un-squatting Titan from its driveway), it was always a little unclear) for as long as possible
It looks like there's juuuuust enough width to squeeze the inbound track through, but they'll probably want to rebuild that timber retaining wall.
 
^ It looks very much on schedule for a March 2021 opening of Lechmere and USq, (or am I deluding myself)
To me it looks like
Aug viaduct posts and spans
Sep month of viaduct floor & drains
Oct month of ballast
Nov month of ties
Dec a month of OCS rigging & signals
Jan a month of OCS connection & integration
Feb a month of Testing
Open March 2021?
I don't know about the MBTA but other transit systems have been known to do 6 months+ of testing and systems integration on extensions. However the GL signaling system is comparitively simple to most new transit being built.

Also any part of this project opening on time is dependent on the MBTA managed Lechmere Viaduct project finishing on time...
 
It looks like there's juuuuust enough width to squeeze the inbound track through, but they'll probably want to rebuild that timber retaining wall.

I believe the plan is to replace the timber retaining wall with a MSE wall system and not encroach very much past the current timber wall limit.
 
67848992-9BA1-464B-95B6-D595DD831AB1.jpeg
5187D815-042B-4A50-8E5B-1C3F5B918F0E.jpeg
572D1711-2630-4066-8FEE-805264DF2975.jpeg
8042D857-79A7-4CB3-9CCD-2EC434B1BE6F.jpeg
BE5CF1E4-5D45-49FA-89FD-298D761E20A2.jpeg
039ED23D-CC5E-435D-B8EA-6486240EE6D0.jpeg
 
So many I-beams. And it looks like they are just about done with that part of the project. Only a few spots to go on either side of the Gilman Square stop that I can see.
 
Sorry if this is the wrong place to ask, but what's going to become of the former Lechmere station site?
 
Sorry if this is the wrong place to ask, but what's going to become of the former Lechmere station site?
This is the perfect place to ask about the site (it was land swapped to to become "Parcel V" in what is now The Cambridge Crossing development) and then the Cambridge Crossing thread is a great place to ask "what will the building look like?" MassDOT swapped it in order to acquire the site for New Lechmere (and a whole lot of other horse-trading, see below).

Sometimes the Old Lechmere site, with 2nd Street extended through Parcel V it, gets called V1 and V2. Check the Cambridge Crossing thread for the current footprint and massing of what they're planning to build, but it stands out as an "outparcel" in views like this one (don't assume, though, they they've settled on a final height/mass/footprint as depicted here):
CX_MapContent_HP_Final_@1.5x_SiteOverview.jpg



In 2008 The Guilford/PanAm entities of what was at the time called North point acquired it as part of a larger land swap of parcels and rights--mostly benefitting GLX and Commuter Rail, and then the Old Lechmere underlying parcel was laundered through North Point's bankruptcy, recapitalization and reorg into Cambridge Crossing. Some details from up thread. If you search hard enough, you'll get more details on the swap (which was not in this thread).
 
Last edited:
That is the main split for the Union and the Medford branches, correct?

Yes. Medford is foreground. Union + carhouse are background (on start of a wide half-looping pattern in the sky).

Union/carhouse side looks like it has more steel yet to be installed on top, because what's there isn't full width for the abutments.
 
Neat!

Wish they could somehow bury this kind of stuff underground tho, or at least put it somewhere in less-than-prime real estate location

Some of their power stations have received some creative integration with buildings, but a lot of substations don't. It's extremely difficult to replace the equipment in these things without having open-air access above to lift and drop decently sized equipment with a crane.
 
Some of their power stations have received some creative integration with buildings, but a lot of substations don't. It's extremely difficult to replace the equipment in these things without having open-air access above to lift and drop decently sized equipment with a crane.
The large size and challenging access and maintenance requirements of both transformers and substations was something I was surprised to learn about in this field. Believe me it's derailed more than a few well intentioned building ground floor plans in Boston. And for resiliance in a low lying coastal city you tend not to want them below ground, and as mentioned above, their size/weight and maintenance makes them expensive/challenging/impossible to move up.
 
I found it amusing that the presentation from the July 7th CWG meeting shows the A line (as abandoned) in a map highlighting new transit connections.
 

Back
Top