Developed to improve the quality of Boston’s light rail service, the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority’s (MBTA) multibillion-dollar Green Line Modernization Program will increase capacity and enhance accessibility through fleet modernization, infrastructure upgrades, and advanced technology within a Program Management/Construction Management (PM/CM) framework. The program includes projects that will modernize stations; update tracks, signals, and power systems; acquire a new fleet of modern light rail vehicles; and adopt new state-of-the-art technology to meet the demands of a modern light rail transit system. Overall, the program will give passengers access to a safer, accessible, more comfortable, and more reliable Green Line.
Using a phased approach to minimize disruptions to customers, the long-term project offers a host of benefits, including:
- Faster, more reliable, on-time service
- Stations that support fully level boarding and are more accessible, brighter, safer, and comfortable, and offer improved communication infrastructure
- New and modern trolleys to increase capacity and reduce impacts of overcrowding
- More accessible trolleys with lower floors and extendable bridge plates
- Weather resiliency measures to reduce flooding in tunnels during extreme weather and infrastructure that is more resilient and designed to cope with climate change
As part of the PM/CM team, VHB is leading design management for internally designed projects and providing design oversight and review support as an extension of the MBTA’s staff. VHB is also playing a substantial role in stakeholder and public outreach aspects of the program.
