Project News

December 2001 -- The MBTA has concluded the first round of public meetings for its Indigo Line/Fairmount Branch Phase 1 Improvement Study. During the months of November and December 2001, residents, the business community, and political leaders representing the neighborhoods of Four Corners/Codman Sq., Hyde Park, Uphams Corner and Mattapan were invited to list their goals and objectives for the Indigo Line. The overwhelming consensus was that neighborhoods abutting the existing Fairmount Branch deserve service equivalent to that enjoyed by MBTA riders in other neighborhoods of the city—thanks to all who participated! The MBTA’s consultant for the study, KKO & Associates, will compile information gathered at the public meetings and report back to the Project Steering Committee. KKO plans to issue a final recommendation by April 2002.

September 2001 -- KKO presented its Draft Existing Conditions Report to the Project Steering Committee. The initial report is encouraging in that it notes that there are no engineering or operational reasons why existing commuter rail trains cannot operate on the line at frequencies as close as every five minutes or why additional stations cannot be added. Steering committee members note that this is critical to achieving the goal of rapid transit-like service (even if what is running initially is still technically commuter rail). KKO also identifies eleven potential new station sites to be further evaluated: (1) South Bay Center, (2) Bird St., (3) Columbia Rd., (4) Washington St./Mt. Bowdoin, (5) Harvard St., (6) Talbot Ave., (7) Norfolk St., (8) Blue Hill Ave., (9) Cummins Hghwy, (10) River St., (11) Dana/Glenwood. KKO will recommend a small selection of stations to be added from this list in its final recommendation. The Steering Committee suggested also looking at potential stations closer to the Southampton St. side of South Bay Center (to better serve the Boston Medical Center) and Geneva Avenue in Four Corners. The committee also raised a concern regarding the consultant’s identification of stations under 800 feet long as “substandard.” Noting that Orange Line stations are approximately 400 feet or less, it was felt that urban areas would be better served by shorter trains running at greater frequencies. Also, the committee was concerned that the most advantageous potential station sites—namely those at key nodes—might be the least able to handle long stations.

June 2001 -- The MBTA Fairmount Line Study Steering Committee met for the first time on June 19th at the Massachusetts Transportation Building in Boston. Attendees included business owners and community leaders, as well as representatives from the MBTA Advisory Board, the Boston Transportation Department and the Boston Redevelopment Authority, the MBTA, and the contractor doing the study, KKO & Associates. (Click here for a list of steering committee members). The meeting was chaired by Joe Cosgrove of MBTA Planning.

The KKO Consultant Team opened with an initial review of Fairmount service, noting the unique character of the line, in that it is the only commuter rail line under 10 miles in length, the only line to serve only the City of Boston, and the only line in the MBTA system without Saturday or Sunday service. The line currently suffers from low service velocity, infrequent service, low visibility, and high fares, and consequently has the poorest ridership and productivity figures in the commuter rail system.

David Nelson of KKO pointed out that the line was doubled tracked and in reasonably good shape. The track, in fact, was new in the 1970's and has not seen heavy use (railroad tracks - unlike asphalt roads - can hold up for decades). The ties on one track have been recently replaced and work is scheduled for the other. While many of the bridges along the ROW do need work, that work is already in the MBTA’s capital plan. Only a few of the original (pre-MBTA) stations are in service, and they have narrow, non-ADA compliant platforms (intended to be temporary). KKO proposed a three part plan of work: (1) an assessment of existing conditions, (2) an identification of options for improvement, and (3) an evaluation of improvement options. A final report is scheduled for release in December. KKO plans to rely heavily on interviews with neighborhood leaders and public officials, input from open community meetings, and the Project Steering Committee. For a detailed outline of the Work Plan, click here.

The meeting was then opened up to the full Indigo Line/Fairmount Steering Committee for comments and questions. The following points were raised:

• The Indigo Line service area needs to be defined carefully, taking into account planned and potential development, connections to the bus network, and the interrelationship between existing and proposed stations.
• Marketing of the service will be critical to the success of the service. Currently, people who could use the Fairmount Brach are unaware that there is a station in their neighborhood, or how to use commuter rail. Furthermore, many riders do not realize that a Combo pass is good for service between the inner stations.
• The value of the Indigo Line as a means of relieving overcrowding on the bus network -- particularly the #15 bus -- needs to be emphasized.
• Travel time savings, through more direct and rapid service, need to be quantified, particularly in comparison to equivalent trips on MBTA buses.
• Parking demand -- and the relationship between commuter parking, residential parking and retail parking -- needs to be taken into account at the proposed and existing station sites.
• Demand modeling for the Indigo Line needs to include other destinations besides from South Station. Many riders, for example, can be expected to use the line to reach commercial or employment bases in the South Bay Center/Newmarket area, or at the new Morton Plaza at the Morton Street Station, or at many of the neighborhood centers along the corridor.
• The study should be careful not to over-emphasize constraints, while overlooking project benefits.
• While capacity at South Station was identified as a potential constraint to increased service, this is not an issue outside of rush hour and on weekends. Likewise, planned service expansions to Greenbush and/or Fall River/New Bedford are not a sure thing, and should not be viewed as limiting South Station capacity for service improvements on the Fairmount Branch/Indigo Line.
• The study should explore methods of increasing the speed of the line, including eliminating the non-passenger stop for railroad employees, or running shorter trains that could then accelerate and decelerate faster.

Publicity: Newspaper articles on the Indigo Line

Riding History's Rails: Dot Train Debate Nothing New -- The Dorchester Reporter, August 31st, 2000. (Try this link if the other one doesn't work).

MBTA takes a look at hybrid rail line through Mattapan -- The Boston Herald: News, December 8th, 2000.

An MBTA Project to Boost -- The Boston Herald: Editorial, December 11th, 2000.

T Study Could Lead to New Transit Rail Line -- The Dorchester Reporter, November 2001.

MBTA consultant says proposed Dorchester rail line is feasible (click on the link in the box on the right to get the article or click here) -- Bay State Banner, November 22nd, 2001.

MBTA Weighs Idea of Expanded Line -- The Boston Globe, December 23rd, 2001.

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This page created 6.28.01, last modified 1.22.02.