Poftak said Thursday that the T is still working to determine the schedule for the rail expansion's second branch, leaving on the table the possibility that the MBTA could postpone the remainder of the project a second time. They also announced that the second, larger Green Line Extension branch adding six stops from East Cambridge to Medford would be postponed from an end-of-year opening to a May 2022 target.Īt the time, officials attributed the delay to supply chain problems exacerbated by the pandemic. In June, MBTA officials pushed the goal for the Union Square target from October - itself an earlier deadline than originally set - to December. "If we're not more productive and more efficient in building out these next two traction power substations, it is going to impact the schedule."Ĭonstruction on the 4.7-mile extension began in 2018. "It is one of the challenges we are facing and it is one of the areas that we're concentrating on as one of the critical path items," Poftak said. The T hopes to use the stumbling blocks on the Union Square branch as a lesson for the rest of the project. Workers need to build two more similar substations for the second branch, Poftak said, though he noted that they have "a little bit longer window" of time for those facilities. During construction, Poftak said the building's tight quarters meant "only so many people" could fit inside and do the technical work needed. That facility, known as a traction power substation, converts energy to be used by the trolleys that run on the Green Line. Poftak said "a variety of challenges" contributed to the latest delay on the Union Square-bound chunk of the project, particularly during work on a facility that will help provide power to the system. The $2.3 billion rail expansion is approaching completion after a rocky, decades-long history featuring a lawsuit, canceled contracts and several delays.Īnd while the project remains on target for its current budget, T officials continue to push off the final opening amid construction hiccups, some inflicted by the COVID-19 pandemic.
The MBTA will postpone the opening of a Green Line Extension stop in Somerville by three months, and the already-delayed May 2022 goal for the remainder of the megaproject may also run into issues, officials announced Thursday.Ĭalling it "disappointing news," MBTA General Manager Steve Poftak said the transit agency now expects to reopen the Green Line's Lechmere Station and open a brand-new stop in Somerville's Union Square in March rather than in December.
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