MBTA Construction Projects

Winchester Center construction progress (not my photo - it's from this post on r/mbta)
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9/15
There’s been some recent construction progress on the Franklin Line double track project. The Rockwood Road (MA 115) grade crossing at Norfolk station is now a double-track crossing.
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Speaking of the Franklin line - I recall the town was looking into getting an exception for having trains blast their hour from Dean to Forge Park on the line - anyone know if anything came out of that? Apparently there can be a waiver for it, but is it not because of the grade crossing? Would putting better crossing infrastructure also remove the need for the horns? Just curious as lately I've also read about a number of Hyde Park residents complaining about late night horns.
 
bakgwailo said:
Speaking of the Franklin line - I recall the town was looking into getting an exception for having trains blast their hour from Dean to Forge Park on the line - anyone know if anything came out of that? Apparently there can be a waiver for it, but is it not because of the grade crossing? Would putting better crossing infrastructure also remove the need for the horns? Just curious as lately I've also read about a number of Hyde Park residents complaining about late night horns.
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There's a specific process they have to follow with the Federal Railroad Administration to get a quiet crossing approved. And yes, it requires better crossing infrastructure, mostly on the pavement markings and approaches so town-level $$$.
 
Semass said:
Norfolk seems like an ideal candidate for full high level platforms.
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It's planned after the double-tracking project. They'll be adding a second outbound platform, which will then trigger the MAAB regs to force the current platform to be upgraded to a full-high.
TheRatmeister said:
Due to its location right by a level crossing it's probably the easiest (Well, tied with Norwood Depot) station to do on the Franklin Line.
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They haven't released a budget yet for the Norfolk upgrades, but since it's prefab as all hell it shouldn't logically be a >$20M abomination like so many others.

Norwood Depot's on the Readville-Walpole freight clearance route, so mini-high's as good as it's going to get for the foreseeable future.
 
Friend of mine is part of a construction team working on the Braintree Branch Red Line track today and they're in the process of thermite welding in North Quincy. There was a full depth track replacement all the way down to the ties and ballast. It's gonna be strange seeing light gray gravel and not clacking over joints after all these years
 

State awarded megabucks to replace creaky train drawbridges at North Station​


“State officials report the feds have awarded the MBTA $472 million to replace the current 100-year-old drawbridges that connect North Station to points north and west over the Charles River.

In addition to replacing the current two parallel bridges with three modern spans, the Draw One project will also let the T connect two platforms - Tracks 11 and 12 - at North Station that are not currently connected to the tracks past the station……”

https://www.universalhub.com/2024/state-awarded-megabucks-replace-creaky-train
 
Out of curiosity, does anyone know what the process is mid-cycle when something like this happens and previously allocated funds are no longer needed? It must have happened before with the other recent federal grants, but this one is huge - it's more than half of what the T had programmed in FY25-29 as new spending, the bulk of which had been for Draw 1. Is there a priority list for "if funds available?" I know the question has been asked before the board before during the most recent CIP discussion and the answer at the time was equivocal - but apparently one of the better ones was to exercise the remaining CR bilevel options. I suspect that watching Eng reprogram 472M is going to give us a pretty good idea of where he sees the system going, but at the same time I wouldn't be surprised to see it all go to SoGR work.
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Stlin said:
Out of curiosity, does anyone know what the process is mid-cycle when something like this happens and previously allocated funds are no longer needed? It must have happened before with the other recent federal grants, but this one is huge - it's more than half of what the T had programmed in FY25-29 as new spending, the bulk of which had been for Draw 1. Is there a priority list for "if funds available?" I know the question has been asked before the board before during the most recent CIP discussion and the answer at the time was equivocal - but apparently one of the better ones was to exercise the remaining CR bilevel options. I suspect that watching Eng reprogram 472M is going to give us a pretty good idea of where he sees the system going, but at the same time I wouldn't be surprised to see it all go to SoGR work.
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Their seriously considering double tracking Old Colony?
 
cubbe8 said:
Their seriously considering double tracking Old Colony?
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They've been kicking that one along since the last CIP cycle; in the FY24-28 presentation it was described as "design funding for double-tracking to deliver hourly service on the branches and start planning for the megaproject to double track between Boston and Quincy Center.”

I'd take that as two parts - one part is the simpler one of double tracking portions of the branches so they have more passing opportunities, and a planning effort to design a Quincy pinch solution.
 
TheRatmeister said:
Given that track, power, and signal repairs and upgrades have $3.6 billion unfunded, yeah I think that's a safe bet.
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Is there a further breakdown of there components of SOGR that make up this unfounded $3.6b? I wonder if there’s a blitz, like this year’s track improvement program, that could be a SOGR focus area.
 
bigeman312 said:
Is there a further breakdown of there components of SOGR that make up this unfounded $3.6b? I wonder if there’s a blitz, like this year’s track improvement program, that could be a SOGR focus area.
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Maybe what you're looking for is the "Capital Needs Assessment and Inventory (CNAI)...a routine analysis the MBTA performs every three to four years to help the agency understand the overall condition of the transit system." Along with the CIP to see which improvements they're planning for?

I don't know if there's anywhere to see how the track improvement plan this year has changed the SOGR
 
eber said:
Maybe what you're looking for is the "Capital Needs Assessment and Inventory (CNAI)...a routine analysis the MBTA performs every three to four years to help the agency understand the overall condition of the transit system." Along with the CIP to see which improvements they're planning for?

I don't know if there's anywhere to see how the track improvement plan this year has changed the SOGR
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Thanks! After sifting through this, it looks like directing resources to getting the rapid transit power system to a SOGR could be a good use of funds. 79% of rapid transit power assets are out of good repair. Getting the rapid transit track and power systems both to a SOGR and developing a plan to maintain them in a SOGR would seem to be a core function.
 
Stlin said:
Out of curiosity, does anyone know what the process is mid-cycle when something like this happens and previously allocated funds are no longer needed? It must have happened before with the other recent federal grants, but this one is huge - it's more than half of what the T had programmed in FY25-29 as new spending, the bulk of which had been for Draw 1. Is there a priority list for "if funds available?" I know the question has been asked before the board before during the most recent CIP discussion and the answer at the time was equivocal - but apparently one of the better ones was to exercise the remaining CR bilevel options. I suspect that watching Eng reprogram 472M is going to give us a pretty good idea of where he sees the system going, but at the same time I wouldn't be surprised to see it all go to SoGR work.
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There are mid-year changes frequently. Requests go before an internal committee. However, some of the project funding may have already been assumed as funded by this grant (i.e, "we think we'll get $200m from Grant XYZ") so it might not be the entire $470 million being set free.

From what I've read, this funding is also for the bridges only. The tower, signal, and track upgrades are left unfunded. They might move the money within the project if there are existing sources that can cover those. If money is freed from the project, chances are it will be at an amount that Eng definitely has a say in the decision making.

I also think this is a good step forward for the T's relationship with the FTA/FRA. Things haven't been perfect since the safety inspections, but handing over 25% of the remaining available BIL funding to the agency surely says something.

TheRatmeister said:
Given that track, power, and signal repairs and upgrades have $3.6 billion unfunded, yeah I think that's a safe bet.
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More news should be coming in the next few months on this.
 
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