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Boston's Morning Newsletter
Most of Green Line Extension tracks need to be fixed. Here's what that means for riders
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.
Happy “We Should Have Made a Restaurant Reservation Earlier” weekend — aka Head of the Charles weekend. Expect heavy crowds and traffic around the river, and much of Memorial Drive will be closed during the day Saturday and Sunday (though it’s still open today).
Check out our full HOCR guide on how to get there and what to see this year — and while you’re at it, come say hi to us at the WBUR tent!
Now to an all-too-familiar presence in this newsletter: the T.
Narrowing down the problem: The MBTA says most of the newly opened Green Line Extension’s tracks will need to be fixed, after revealing yesterday that the recent issues — the fact that much of the tracks were too narrow for trains to safely go full speed— were known as far back as April 2021. According to MBTA General Manager Phil Eng, 80% of the GLX’s branch through Somerville to Medford/Tufts and 50% of the Union Square branch will need adjustments.
- Does that mean more shutdowns? Potentially. MBTA spokesman Joe Pesaturo said in an email that the T is “looking at proposed plans to get a lot of the work done during nights.” Eng also mentioned the possibility of weekend closures, but nothing has been finalized yet. Eng stressed that the contractors who built the GLX — not taxpayers — will pay for the repairs.
- How did this happen? Here’s where it gets a bit technical. It’s not the tracks themselves that are the problem. The wood ties below the tracks came preassembled with the metal plates that hold the tracks in place. But it appears those plates were anchored to the ties a little too closely together, making the tracks too narrow. “That’s what I believe is a likely cause of this,” Eng said.
- Zoom in: It’s a difference of the tiniest amounts. Eng says the tracks should be 56.5 inches apart, give or take 1/16th of an inch. Trains can even still run safely if the tracks are too narrow by an eighth of an inch. However, “a significant portion” are off by between one-eighth and three-eighths of an inch, Eng said.
- Zoom out: The fixes that are now needed is all work Eng says “should have” been done by T officials while the project was still being constructed during former Gov. Charlie Baker’s tenure. Making matters worse, Gov. Maura Healey said in a statement that no one told them about it. “Senior MBTA officials under the previous administration knew about issues with the Green Line Extension tracks years ago and did not disclose them to our administration or address them on their watch,” Healey said in a statement. “The people of Massachusetts deserve better.”
Rep. Seth Moulton says he’d be willing to back a Republican from Ohio as the next speaker of the House — but no, not Rep. Jim Jordan. The Salem Democrat told Radio Boston yesterday that he’d support Rep. Brad Wenstrup as a more moderate compromise.
- Why? Moulton said Wenstrup, who’s represented southern Ohio for over a decade, is a fellow veteran who’s been able to work across the aisle: “He’s the kind of moderate, reasonable, thoughtful person we should have as speaker of the House.”
- The latest: Don’t hold your breath for a Speaker Wenstrup. Jordan is planning a third vote in an attempt to become speaker, but his path forward remains unclear after two failed tries.
- In related news: Moulton told Radio Boston that he’s increasingly troubled by the Israeli government’s response and treatment of civilians in Gaza. Listen to the full interview here.
An MSPCA PSA: The local MSPCA is waiving adoption fees for many animals today through Sunday, due to shelters reaching capacity. Mike Kelley, the head of adoptions at MSPCA Angell in Jamaica Plain, told WBUR’s Samantha Coetzee that it’s part of a seasonal decline they tend to see in adoptions during this time of year.
- Fees — which usually range from $15 to $500 — will be waived for rabbits, mice, rats, guinea pigs, hamsters, parakeets, roosters and pigs, along with older cats and dogs. Search available pets here.
P.S.— Do you know which sport local artist Alex Diaz is hoping to compete in at the Olympics in 2024, the first time it will be included? Take our Boston News Quiz and see how closely you’ve been following our coverage this week.
