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Green Line Extension


January 2015
A Full Funding Grant Agreement (FFGA), between the MBTA and the U.S. Department of Transportation Federal Transportation Administration (FTA) was signed for the Green Line Extension (GLX) project. On Monday, January 5, 2015, Governor Deval Patrick was joined by U.S. Transportation Secretary Anthony Foxx as he announced the $996 million federal grant agreement for the GLX project.


October 2014
Construction begins on Union Square Green Line Station.

September 2014
Somerville was seeing Orange on September 2nd as the first T-Stop in 27 years was open at Assembly Square.

March 2014
MassDOT is giving the public an opportunity to ride the Green Line Extension in simulated videos published on their website. The two videos below give the riding experience from North to Washington and the second is from North to Union Square.

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March 2014
Funding for Green Line Extension included in 2015 Federal Budget (Read More).

January 2014
The Draft FY2018 Transportation Capital Investment Plan - which includes the Green Line Extension through Somerville and Medford - has been published by MassDOT (Read More).

January 2014
Community Meetings on noise wall/retaining barrier have been set throughout the month of January (Read More).

December 2013
The Medford Green Line Neighborhood Alliance has posted a great summary on the Green Line Extension status report (Read More).

September 2013
MassDOT Board of Directors Wednesday approved a $393 million contract that will bring the Green Line Extension to Union Square and Washington Street in Somerville (Read More).
July 2013
MassDOT approves another $26M for the Green Line Extension (Read more) and a construction firm is hired for the Green Line Extension (Read more).

June 2013
A series of station design meetings were held that included presentations showing changes that were made (where applicable) and give attendees an opportunity to ask questions.

April 2013
State Legislators submit a scaled-back bill, costing the state $500 Million for infrastructure improvements, conflicting with Governor Patrick's plan and putting the Green Line Extension at risk. Governor Patrick has promised to veto the plan, setting the stage for a tug-of-war on Beacon Hill.

March 2013
Governor Patrick files Transportation Bill to fund infrastructure improvements and the Green Line Extension. The transportation bond bill, to be funded by existing revenues and additional revenues through passage of tax reform, includes the following investments to complete the 21st Century Transportation Plan and fund the existing transportation capital plan for the next four years. Without passage of the Governor’s plan, necessary road and bridge projects will go unaddressed, creating longer commutes, eliminating public transit options and slowing economic recovery and growth.

· $3.4 billion to provide $300 million annually in Chapter 90 funds, a 50 percent increase, distributed to Towns and Cities for local road and bridge projects

· $2.4 billion for transportation construction projects over the next four years that are eligible for 82 percent federal reimbursement of costs, leaving a net state borrowing cost of $432 million

· $4.6 billion to fully state-fund highway maintenance and construction, including major projects identified in the 21st Century Transportation Plan, such as the I-93/I-95 interchange and Springfield I-91 viaduct

· $4.4 billion for regional rail projects identified in the Transportation Plan including Green Line expansion, South Coast Rail and South Station expansion

· $3.3 billion to modernize MBTA subway and bus systems to improve service, safety and customer convenience

· $604 million for regional transit to modernize bus fleets and infrastructure in regional systems statewide

· $146 million for information technology projects, including the statutory requirement to implement an asset management system.

February 2013
Barletta Heavy Division, Inc., the contractor for Phase 1 of the MBTA Green Line Extension Project, received their Notice to Proceed for construction on January 31, 2013. Phase 1 of the GLX Project includes the rehabilitation of the Medford Street Railroad Bridge in Somerville, the Harvard Street Railroad Bridge in Medford, and the demolition of an MBTA facility at 21 Water Street in Cambridge.

Before construction begins, the GLX project will hold a public meet and greet session with the Phase 1 contractor and the community to meet the team, discuss the schedule and to present opportunities for stakeholders to follow the progress of the construction project. You will be notified of the time and location of this Public Meeting in the coming weeks.

In the interim, preconstruction surveying is set to begin and teams will be out in the Phase 1 right of way over the next month.

MassDOT also released the February Status Report.

January 2013
The new milestone is that the MBTA has released the Request for Qualifications (RFQ) for the Construction Manager/General Contractor (CM/GC) services for the Green Line Extension (GLX) Project and is inviting Statements of Qualifications (SOQs) from interested teams. Once selected, the CM/CG will be responsible for performing preconstruction and construction services for the work associated with extending the Green Line from Lechmere Station along the Medford Branch to a point in the vicinity of College Ave. in Medford and along the Union Square Branch to Union Square (Read More)

January 2013
Govenor Deval Patrick unveils a transportation plan, mostly filled with tax increases, in an effort to gather more funds to finance transportation projects that include the Green Line Extension (Read More)

December 2012
Somerville celebrates Green Line Extension kickoff with Governor Deval Patrick. (Read More)
This phase includes demolition of one building and construction on two bridges (one in Medford and one in Somerville). See presentation.

August 2012
Massachusetts Department of Transportation Secretary Richard A. Davey, MBTA Acting General Manager Jonathan R. Davis and Somerville Mayor Joseph A. Curtatone announced today that the City of Somerville, MassDOT and the MBTA have signed a Memorandum of Agreement (MOA) that describes how land will be acquired by the City, or by the Somerville Redevelopment Authority (SRA) acting as the City's agent, to be transferred to the MBTA in exchange for a firm commitment by the MBTA and MassDOT to construct a transit station in Union Square as part of the Green Line Extension (GLX). For a symbolic payment of one dollar, the MBTA will be given a temporary easement for pickup/drop-off area and construction staging areas. Under the agreement, the MBTA will also receive a permanent easement for the station building, which will be sited near the intersection of Prospect Street and Webster Avenue. The City/SRA will acquire and retain long-term control over adjacent parcels and air rights on the same block until it concludes development and sales agreements with one or more developers.(Read More)

July 2012
Green Line Extension website features "rider view" interactive map of proposed stops. 
MassDOT and the MBTA received full federal environmental approval for the Green Line Extension project.

December 2011 Update...
After a substantially signed petition, numerous letters, meetings, a mock delay, and letter from Congressman Mike Capuano-a new schedule for the Green Line Extension was released by MassDOT.

September 2011 Update...
Some funding has been set for the Green Line Extension that will be paid out during the course of 4 years. Starting with $66.2 million in funding for fiscal year 2012, funding increases the following years to $79.3 million in 2013, $94 million in 2014 and $235.8 million in 2015. Massachusetts will also be seeking Federal funds, as well.

August 2011 Update...
It was announed in August of 2011 that, after further review, the Green Line would not be a reality until 2018-2020. The 2011 SIP Status Report, published by MassDOT, laid out reasoning and a new timeline for the construction. A public meeting has been scheduled for September 13th at 1pm and 5pm located in
 the Washington Street Conference Center, 2nd Floor,   Rooms A, B, & C MassDEP, One Winter Street, Boston, Massachusetts 02108. See official public notice regarding this meeting.

March 28, 2011 Update...
The following is from Rep. Denise Provost's newsletter...

On March 15, 2011, I met, along with other members of the Somerville legislative delegation, with officials from the Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) about the status of the Green Line Extension (GLX) project. Here are some highlights of that meeting....

1) Funding
Readers may remember that the legislature authorized $600 million for the project in the 2008 Transportation Bond Bill. Since that time, the demise of the proposed development of North Point in Cambridge has shifted to the state responsibility for the relocation of Lechmere Station. That item, and others, have led to a revised project cost estimate of about $900 million - roughly $1 billion - leading to concerns about the project financing plan. We learned that:

+ The state is applying for federal New Starts grant funding for 50% of the project. This grant is determined not so much as "a big up or down," but as "a series of incremental approvals" (Kate Fichter, Project Manager for GLX). The state will find out some time this summer if it has been approved for federal reimbursement towards its preliminary engineering phase.

+ Even if New Starts approval is not forthcoming, the project will proceed with state funds. Doing so will necessitate the filing of another transportation bond bill. A first draft of that bill has been prepared, which MassDOT is working on with the Governor's Office of Administration and Finance, but it is not certain when the bill will be filed.

+ The challenges of qualifying for New Starts funding is partly that "the federal rules penalize, a bit, cities that have invested in transit systems, and favors those which have not" (MBTA General Manager Richard Davey). The state's serious backlog in keeping the existing MBTA system in a state of good repair is also an issue. MassDOT's Secretary Jeffrey Mullan has devoted some effort to trying to get the Federal Transit Administration (FTA) to change some of its rules around the New Starts program: "the best way [now] to advance New Starts funding is to have no stops - or, move to Phoenix or Charlotte - quick travel times increase scores" under the New Starts grading system for projects.

2) Project Schedule
+ MassDOT's David Mohler still estimates that the project is only a year behind schedule. Vehicle procurement is proceeding. The next 14 months will be devoted to preliminary engineering; accumulating the final documents necessary to go out to bid for final design.

+ Kate Fichter anticipates that there could be "some progress on build," by the fall of 2012, although MBTA's Richard Davey characterized such a schedule as "very aggressive." Project planners are looking at the possibility of doing some bridge work or track work in advance of the rest of the project: Jeffrey Mullan said that "there is a strategy that would have us break up the project into smaller segments," but that such a direction would not be taken if it "hurt the overall project…" Local station design workshops could start as soon as late May, 2011, and continue through the summer.

3) The Community Path?
While Jeffrey Mullan states that "you don't have to sell us on the benefits of the Community Path, "it does create funding challenges, "and doesn't improve our chances for New Starts funding. While the Cedar Street to Lowell Street portion of the path is pretty straightforward, other parts of the design further east, that call for the path to be cantilevered off the side of the right of way's retaining wall are so complex and expensive that, "it's possible that no one will ever fund it - ever," said Kate Fichter. She suggested that we would need to "revisit" the design, and consider more shared road use, and other "on-grade options."

March 15, 2011 Update...
The MBTA has entered into a land exchange agreement with Pan Am Railways that will facilitate the construction and operation of the Green Line Extension by providing the Commonwealth with crucial trackage rights. This agreement will also support the advancement of the NorthPoint mixed-use development project. MassDOT and the MBTA look forward to working with the new NorthPoint development team to enhance the designs for a relocated Lechmere Station; together, we share the goals of creating a vibrant Lechmere Square area and providing safe and comfortable access for Green Line riders. The agreement, which has been approved by the MBTA Board of Directors, is available here. The agreement is also described in a press release.

Also, a new design concept has been designed for the future Brickbottom/Washington Street Green Line station. The new concept was heavily influenced by the public comments that we received during the review periods for the Draft Environmental Impact Report and the Final Environmental Impact Report, as well as collaboration with the City of Somerville. The new design concept will shortly be posted to the Green Line Extension website.

On Wednesday, March 30, 2011, the Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC) will be hosting a second public input meeting for the Mystic Valley Parkway Community Visioning Process. This meeting will focus on topics such as traffic and parking, air quality, land acquisition, and strategies for managing neighborhood change associated with the possible extension of the Green Line to Mystic Valley Parkway. The meeting will be held at 51 Winthrop Street, Medford from 6:30 PM – 9:00 PM. Please visit MAPC's website to RSVP and get meeting updates.

In addition, MassDOT will be advertising a series of upcoming civic engagement opportunities for the Green Line Extension project as a whole. These will be a chance to meet the members of the new design team and hear the latest design concepts and approaches for the project.

For transportation news and updates visit MassDOT at our website: www.mass.gov/massdot, blog: www.mass.gov/blog/transportation, or follow MassDOT on twitter at www.twitter.com/massdot.

February 10, 2011 Update...
By Kate Fichter
MassDOT and the MBTA are pleased to report that the MBTA Board of Directors this week approved funding for the next phase of design for the Green Line Extension project. For this next phase, the MBTA has retained the services and expertise of a joint venture led by HDR Engineering, Inc. and Gilbane Building Company. Both firms have offices in Boston and have worked extensively on MBTA and MassDOT projects. We look forward to the experience and skills they will bring to the Green Line Extension project, and will soon be organizing events in the Green Line Extension municipalities to introduce the new team members to the communities (MORE)


December 30, 2010 Update...
New project website launched.


October 13, 2010 Update...
Yahoo Group Created!
Summary from September public meeting published.


July 22, 2010 Documents...
Mirror H and Option L Maintenance Facility Noise and Vibration Assessment.


May 17th Update...
Option L Approved

June 15, 2010 Update
The Final Environmental Impact Report (FEIR) for the Green Line Extension project has been published.


May 25, 2010 Update
The Green Line fact sheet has been published.


Green Line ExtensionHistory
The idea of extending the Green Line to Somerville is by no means a new concept. As early as the 1920s the Metropolitan Planning Commission considered the possibility. Numerous studies promoted the plan over the next decades. In 1990, Massachusetts agreed to extend the Green Line to offset the pollution increase within Somerville caused by the Big Dig. Despite this legal commitment, however, the Green Line Extension project lagged far behind schedule, prompting the City of Somerville and the Conservation Law Foundation to file a lawsuit to keep the project moving. In 2006, this litigation, with the help of community support and advocacy groups such as Somerville Transportation Equity Partnership (STEP) and the Union Square Task Force, finally brought about a multi-million dollar state investment in the Green Line extension from Lechmere Station into Somerville and Medford (READ MORE)

Please visit these links for more information: