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Boston's Morning Newsletter
Here's the new timeline for South Coast Rail
Editor's Note: This is an excerpt from WBUR's daily morning newsletter, WBUR Today. If you like what you read and want it in your inbox, sign up here.
It’s Monday, and the federal government is still running after all. However, in the wake of the stopgap funding bill, a new fight has emerged for the Massachusetts delegation in Washington, D.C.
More on that below, but first let’s run through some local news:
Another big MBTA project delayed: South Coast residents will have to wait until at least next summer for the T to come to town. The MBTA had originally planned to begin service on its new commuter rail branches to Fall River and New Bedford by the end of this year (that remained the goal as recently as this past August, per officials). However, the MBTA now says service will begin in summer 2024. That could mean late June — or it could mean nearly a year from now.
- What’s the hold up? It’s a similar story as the delays that held up the opening of the Green Line Extension: supply chain issues. South Coast Rail construction began during the pandemic. And while T officials say the work itself has gone well, they indicated it’s been bogged down by problems getting materials.
- What’s left? During a board meeting last week, T officials said construction on the Fall River Line is almost all done. But there’s still a good chunk of work left on the longer leg to New Bedford — particularly the new East Taunton station. They also need to run lots of conductor training and safety testing.
- What’s the big deal? Fall River, New Bedford and Taunton are the only major cities within 60 miles of Boston without commuter rail service — at least not since the late 1950s. South Coast Rail changes that. It’s also the first MBTA commuter rail expansion since the opening of the South Shore’s Greenbush Line in 2007.
- Don’t get too excited: The full, one-way trip from New Bedford to South Station is expected to take 90 minutes, due to the somewhat circuitous route taken in Phase 1 of the project. Eventually, the T plans to build a faster route through Stoughton and Raynham, but that “full build” won’t happen until the 2030s at the earliest.
All aboard the night train: In related news, the T’s new fall commuter rail schedule takes effect today. As WBUR’s Andrea Perdomo-Hernandez reports, it includes more late-night trains out of Boston on both weekdays and weekends. For most lines, the last train of the night will leave around 11:45 p.m. or so — about 45-55 minutes later than it previously did. MBTA General Manager Phil Eng says the change is something many riders have been asking for.
- The new schedules also add two more rush-hour trains on the Fitchburg, Franklin, Lowell and Worcester lines. You can view all of the new schedules here.
RIP: Two-time World Series-winning Red Sox pitcher Tim Wakefield died Sunday at the age of 57, just days after former teammate Curt Schilling revealed (without permission) that the knuckleballer had brain cancer. The news broke while the Red Sox were playing their final game of the season yesterday, and tributes have been pouring in ever since from old Red Sox teammates to national late-night hosts to both the current and former governors.
- While Wakefield may be most remembered for his mesmerizing knuckleball, the eight-time Roberto Clemente Award nominee also leaves a legacy of long-time charitable work off the field. Dana-Farber Cancer Institute Chief Philanthropy Officer Melany Duval said Sunday that Wakefield “always went the extra mile” as a leader of the Jimmy Fund. “He often visited our adult and pediatric floors, met our teen patients during their annual spring training trip, and was dedicated to helping us raise funds for cancer research and care. He will be missed.”
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