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MBTA Greenbush Project
FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS Last Updated: July 16, 2007
· Safety · Resources for Additional Information · Noise Program Eligible Properties List
Q: When will service start? A: Service is currently scheduled to start in late October 2007.
Q: What
will the train schedule be?
A: There will be 12 trips each way on weekdays and 8 round trips on Saturdays and Sundays. The exact train schedules have not yet been set. Trains will operate between approximately 5:45 am and 11:00 pm.
Q: What
will fares be? A:
Greenbush Line fares will be charged based on the MBTA’s zone fare system in
use systemwide. Current adult one-way and monthly pass fares for each of
the Greenbush Line stations are listed in the table below. Reduced fares
are charged for children and senior citizens.
Monthly passes permit unlimited local bus and rapid transit use as well
as commuter rail use up to the zone listed. For additional fare
information visit www.mbta.com. Q:
Where will the stations be? How
long will the train trip take? A:
There will be seven new stations on the Greenbush Line providing a total of
more than 3000 parking spaces. A
one-way trip from Greenbush to Boston South Station will take about an hour.
See table below for the location and details of each of the new stations.
Q:
Will there be a charge for parking at the Greenbush Line stations? A:
Yes. The current charge for parking in MBTA commuter rail lots is $2.00
per day. There is currently no charge for parking on Saturdays, Sundays,
and National Holidays. Some of the parking at the Weymouth Landing and
North Scituate stations will be operated by the local municipality.
Charges for parking in municipally operated lots may be different. Q:
Where will tickets be sold? A:
Tickets and passes will be available at the South Station ticket office and
from www.mbta.com. One-way and round
trip tickets will also be available from the conductors on the trains.
As on other commuter rail lines, the MBTA expects to make arrangements with
stores near the stations to sell commuter rail tickets. Q:
Will there be a waiting room at the stations? A:
Each station platform will have a lighted shelter with benches and passenger
information displays for passengers waiting for trains or waiting to be picked
up. Stations will not have attendants or enclosed waiting rooms however. Q:
Are trains and stations handicapped accessible? A:
Yes. The Greenbush Line will be fully handicapped accessible.
Accessible parking spaces will be provided at all stations, and all station
platforms will be raised to the floor level of the coaches over their entire
length for easy boarding. Q:
Where will the trains go to? A:
All Greenbush Line trains will terminate at Boston South Station located at
the corner of Summer Street and Atlantic Avenue in Boston’s financial
district. Riders will be able to transfer at South Station for other
commuter rail services, Amtrak intercity trains, intercity bus services, MBTA
Silver Line buses to the South Boston Waterfront and Logan Airport, Red Line
trains to Cambridge and Somerville, local bus services, and taxis. Q:
Where can I transfer from Greenbush trains to the Red Line? A:
All Greenbush trains will stop at the Quincy Center Red Line station.
Many Greenbush Line trains will also stop at the JFK/UMASS Red Line station.
Transfer to the Red Line is also available at South Station.
Transfer is free for passengers holding monthly passes. Q:
Will all trains make all stops? A:
The current plan is for all trains to make all seven stops on the Greenbush
Line as well as stops at Quincy Center and Boston South Station. Some
trains may also stop at JFK/UMASS. Q:
Are there accommodations for bicycles at the stations? A:
Yes, all of the Greenbush Line stations will have bike racks.
Bicycles are allowed on the trains subject certain restrictions –
refer to the MBTA’s website (www.mbta.com
- Riding the T – Bikes on the T) for more information. Q:
Will local MBTA bus services change? A:
The
MBTA currently has no plans to alter bus service in Weymouth or Hingham when
the Greenbush Commuter Rail line begins service. However, slight routing and
schedule modifications to Route 222 (East Weymouth) and/or Route 225 (Weymouth
Landing) may be considered such that bus and commuter rail service can be
integrated at certain Greenbush Line train stations. Should such modifications
be considered, the public will be notified in advance by flyers on-board
buses, posters at the Quincy Center Station, press releases, and other means. Q:
Will MBTA commuter boat services change? A:
There are no changes in commuter boat service planned as part of the Greenbush
Line Project. Proposals for improvements to the commuter boat services
are being discussed. Q:
Will train service on the MBTA’s Kingston/Plymouth or Middleborough/
Lakeville Commuter Rail Lines be reduced? A:
No, however the afternoon Boston to Whitman roundtrip (trains 095 and 096)
will be discontinued. These
trains were instituted temporarily to provide additional capacity for riders
from the Greenbush corridor pending the start of Greenbush Line service. Q:
Will MBTA Red Line service change? A:
No, Red Line rapid transit service will be unaffected by the Greenbush Line
project. However, the Greenbush Line service is expected to free up
several hundred parking spaces at the Braintree, Quincy Adams, and Quincy
Center station parking garages. Q:
What is the expected ridership on the Greenbush Line? A:
More than 4200 passengers per weekday are expected to ride the Greenbush Line
each way by the year 2010. Q:
How much has the Greenbush Project Cost? A:
The Project is currently estimated to cost $512 million including planning,
engineering, land, and permitting costs along with the cost of construction
and new trains. Q:
Why is the project being built - what is it intended to accomplish? A:
The Greenbush Line is being built as mitigation for the Central Artery/Tunnel
Project in downtown Boston. The basic purpose of the project is to
reduce automobile traffic on the congested highways leading into downtown
Boston by diverting commuter traffic from the South Shore from automobiles to
transit. The Project is also intended to meet other needs of the area
including: ·
Encouraging
transit-oriented development patterns; ·
Provide transit
service to the South Shore area which is currently underserved; ·
Increase
transit capacity to the South Shore to alleviate congestion on other
transportation facilities in the area including the Braintree Red Line; and ·
Reduce fuel
consumption and air pollution from automobiles. Q:
Will there be train whistles? A:
No. The Greenbush Line is being designed to qualify as a “Quiet
Zone” where train horns (“whistles”) are not routinely sounded at grade
crossings. While the horns will not be sounded routinely at crossings,
they will still be used for other purposes such as to warn maintenance workers
and in emergency situations. Q:
How will the MBTA keep commuters from parking on side streets or in
business parking lots? A:
The MBTA and local police will work together to enforce parking restrictions
around commuter parking lots. Q:
Will the MBTA assessment on my Town increase when train service starts? A:
No. Local assessments for the MBTA are based on population not service. Q:
How fast will the trains travel? A:
The trains will operate at speeds up to 60 mph. Trains will travel
slower around station stops and sharp curves. Q:
How many cars will trains have? A:
The trains will typically have 5 or 6 coaches using a mix of single- and
double-level cars. The line is designed to accommodate trains with up to
9 cars. Q:
Will trains at the layover facility in Scituate idle all night long? A:
No, except in unusual circumstances such as a power failure or unusually cold
weather (below 10°F). The layover facility will be equipped an
electrical heating system that the trains will be plugged into to allow the
locomotives to be turned off overnight. Q:
Will lights at the stations be on all night long? A:
No, most of the station lights will be timed to shut off after the last train
of the evening (about midnight). Q:
Will freight trains operate on the Greenbush Line? A:
Only in East Braintree where local rail freight service operates currently.
The MBTA does not operate freight service. While freight service could
theoretically be expanded beyond East Braintree it is not likely due to a lack
of potential freight customers along the line. Q:
Will herbicides be sprayed on the tracks? A:
Herbicides are sprayed along the railroad as required to control vegetation
growth on the tracks. Spraying is generally done annually in the summer
and uses only herbicides and applicators approved by the Pesticide Bureau of
the Massachusetts Department of Agricultural Resources. Spraying is restricted in wetland areas, around drinking
water wells and reservoirs, and in windy conditions. Q:
When will maintenance work be done? A:
The MBTA inspects, services, and repairs its rail lines on a regular
basis so that we can continue to provide safe, reliable, and efficient transit
service. Much of this work will be done during normal business hours,
however, it will be necessary on occasion to perform certain maintenance work
at night or on weekends to avoid disruptions to train service. Q: How noisy will the trains really be? A:
Every individual has different expectations and reactions to noise and the way
a person perceives a noise is dependant upon many factors. The easiest
way to get a feeling for how noisy the trains will actually be is to visit one
of the other two Old Colony commuter rail lines, stand at approximately the
same distance from the track as your house, and judge for yourself.
Remember that noise levels outside will be louder than inside your home and
that there will be no routine blowing of the train horns at the crossings on
the Greenbush Line. A typical MBTA commuter rail locomotive passby at a
distance of 50 feet and traveling at a speed of 50 mph generates a maximum
noise level (“Lmax”) of 88 decibels (88 dBA). Q: I will be able to hear the trains, why am I not
receiving noise mitigation? A: Being able to hear the trains is not, in and of
itself, an “Impact”. “Impacted” means that the level of the
noise from the trains is such that it is likely to interfere with important
activities that occur within the building; for example, in a residence it is a
noise level is high enough so as to interfere with sleep. It is likely
that you hear many noises from outside your house today, but they do not
actually interfere with the day-to-day activities in your house. The
same is true for the train – just being able to hear the trains does not
result in an “Impact” condition. Q: How is noise “Impact” determined? A: The Federal Transit Administration, (FTA) which is
the federal agency that monitors and regulates public transit systems,
developed a series of guidelines that transit systems use to measure, evaluate
and predict noise levels from trains, and also provide guidance on how and
when to mitigate those impacts. These guidelines were developed over a
ten-year period through an expert peer review system that included the FTA,
the EPA, the National Academy of Sciences and many acoustical engineers,
social scientists and health care professionals, and are now used by most
major transit systems. Q: How many homes are eligible for noise mitigation
funding? A: There are about 120 properties containing a total of
about 135 dwelling units currently eligible for funding.
As of the middle of 2007, the MBTA had executed funding agreements with
100 of these properties providing a total of $1.6 million in mitigation
funding. Q: What if the noise mitigation doesn’t work? A: There is no guarantee that the mitigation will work
or that the actual impacts will be as projected. However, the MBTA will
perform follow up testing after service starts to determine the actual noise
levels caused by the trains. If the actual levels are found to be higher
than the projections, the MBTA will investigate the cause and take appropriate
corrective action. This circumstance is considered unlikely because the
projections are based on measurements of actual MBTA commuter rail trains on
the other two Old Colony lines to Middleboro and Kingston. As described
above, the MBTA’s experience is that this type of mitigation program is very
successful and homeowners find that it provides a significant amount of noise
reduction. Vibration
Impacts
Q: How is vibration different from noise? A: Vibration is movement of the ground due to the
passage of a train that is felt, while noise is air borne and is heard. Q: How was vibration impact determined? A: Vibration, like noise, was determined using the
Federal Transit Administration (FTA) guidelines. Q: How is the vibration impact determination
different from noise impact determination? A: Like noise, vibration levels vary with train speed
and distance from the track. Unlike noise however, vibration is
evaluated against a fixed impact level for a single train pass-by: 80 VdB
(vibration velocity level in decibels). A level above 80 VdB constitutes
impact based on causing human annoyance. A vibration level of 80 VdB is,
however, well below the level that would cause damage to buildings.
Further, vibration levels vary depending on ground conditions under the track
– solid rock transmits vibration better than soft soil. Q: Why is the number of trains not a factor in
determining vibration impact? A: Human response to vibration is more closely related
to the maximum vibration level than to the number of vibration causing events.
The FTA guidelines do however have different standards for “frequent” vs.
“infrequent” events. The Greenbush Line trains are in the
“infrequent” category – less than 70 trains per day. Q: Are vibration levels comparable to noise levels? A: No. Noise and vibration are both measured in
“decibels”, but on different scales – 80 vibration decibels is not the
same as 80 noise decibels. Q: What do the vibration values mean? Will my
house shake and be damaged? A: People cannot feel vibrations below 65 VdB. A
typical diesel locomotive at a distance of 50 feet and traveling at a speed of
50 mph will generate a vibration level of 85 VdB. A level of 90 VdB is
roughly the level caused by slamming a heavy door in a house. Damage to
buildings may occur at levels above 100 VdB, although damage to old,
fragile or historic buildings may occur at levels above 95 VdB.
There are no projected levels on the Greenbush Line that exceed 100 VdB and
most are much lower. Q: What is the mitigation for vibration impact? A: MBTA has installed rubber “ballast mats” under
the track to dampen vibrations at most locations where vibration impacts
occur. The mats can reduce vibration levels by up to 5 VdB, but actual
performance depends on soil conditions – the mats work best over hard rock
and are less effective over soft soils. Q: Why were some locations not mitigated for
vibration? A: Due to the high cost of the ballast mats, a cost
effectiveness criterion was established. Locations with low impact and
soft soils that inhibit ballast mat effectiveness do not meet the cost
effectiveness criteria and thus will not receive mitigation. Q: What if the vibration mitigation doesn’t work? A: The MBTA will perform follow up testing after
service starts to determine the actual vibration levels caused by the trains.
If the actual levels are found to be higher than the projections, MBTA will
investigate the cause and take appropriate corrective action. That
circumstance is considered unlikely because the projections are:
Ballast mats were used on the other branches of the Old
Colony Lines and follow up testing demonstrated a high level of success in the
places where mats were found to be appropriate. Air
Quality Impacts
Q:
Why will the trains be diesel powered rather than electric? A:
The entire MBTA commuter rail system, virtually all freight railroads, and
most of the commuter rail systems in the United States, are powered by diesel
locomotives. The use of electric trains on the Greenbush was considered
early in the planning process, but was found to be impractical and not
prudent. The substantial additional cost required to construct the
overhead power lines and to purchase electric locomotives could not be
justified as it would not have resulted in significant additional ridership
Additionally, while noise impacts would be reduced somewhat, there
would be additional visual and aesthetic impacts from the overhead power lines
and their support structures. However, all of the bridges and tunnels
over the Greenbush Line have been built with enough height over the tracks for
the overhead power lines so that the line could in the future be converted to
electric operation. Q:
Will the diesel trains create more pollution? A:
The exhaust emissions from the trains will be more than offset by the
reduction in emissions from the automobiles that the train service will remove
from the roads. Once the Greenbush Line is in place, the project will
result in significant reductions in automobile usage. In fact, each day,
over 76,000 automobile miles driven – or the equivalent of three times the
distance around the earth’s equator – will be eliminated off of the
region’s roadway system. As
part of the environmental review, the MBTA performed an extensive air quality
analysis for the project. This analysis demonstrated significant daily
reductions in the pollutants that cause smog as well as those which contribute
to climate change (or global warming.) The analysis did show a very
small increase in one pollutant – oxides of nitrogen (NOx) – however, the
increase was so small that it was actually within the margin of error of the
study, so the increase may in fact, not really occur. When looking at
the overall air quality issues associated with the project, and not just the
results of one of several pollutants, the Greenbush project provides a
significant air quality as well as transportation benefit to the region, a
point of view that has been reinforced by the environmental agencies as well
as environmental advocacy groups. The Greenbush Project is one of the
transit improvements that the Commonwealth of Massachusetts has committed to
making as part of its plan to comply with federal air quality standards under
the Clean Air Act as well as to offset the transportation impacts of the
Central Artery project. A detailed discussion of the air quality impacts
of the project can be found in Chapter V of the Final Environmental Impact
Report for the Greenbush Project (FEIR), which is available at www.mbta.com
under Current Projects – Greenbush. Q:
What will the MBTA do to limit diesel locomotive emissions? A:
All MBTA diesel locomotives systemwide will be modified as required to comply
with new EPA regulations limiting locomotive emissions. These
regulations take effect in 2007 and when fully phased in by 2010 will reduce
nationwide locomotive emissions of NOx by two-thirds and emissions of
hydrocarbons and particulates by half. In fact, the MBTA has already
begun to implement these new measures nearly a decade ahead of the deadline.
In addition, the MBTA is now using Low Sulfur Diesel on all of its trains,
nearly four years ahead of the deadline switching to that fuel type.
These two voluntary measures as well as others, provide even greater air
quality benefits than what were originally anticipated for the Greenbush line,
so much so that the very small increases in NOx described above may not in
fact, occur. Q:
How will MBTA educate children and the public about railroad safety? A:
The MBTA participates in the Operation Lifesaver railroad safety education
program. This national program provides railroad safety education
programs to schools and community groups through municipal police departments.
Safety training in the towns along the Greenbush Line started in 2006. Q:
Will the grade crossings be safe? A:
The MBTA is committed to providing safe grade crossings. All of the
grade crossings on the Greenbush Line are equipped with crossing warning
systems consisting of flashing red lights, bells, and gates. Because the
Greenbush Line will be a “Quiet Zone” where train whistles are not
routinely sounded at crossings, additional safety measures such as median
strips or 4-quadrant gates have been installed at most crossings. MBTA
personnel will inspect and maintain the crossing warning systems on a regular
basis to ensure that they are kept in good working order. Q:
How many grade crossings are there? A:
There are a total of 25 public and 3 private grade crossings on the Greenbush
Line. A total of 15 crossings that existed originally have been
eliminated through the construction of underpasses in Weymouth Landing,
Weymouth Heights, and Hingham Square, an overpass at Rocky Lane in Cohasset,
and the closure or avoidance of 7 other crossings. Q:
Will there be fencing along the track? A:
Fencing is being installed in all inhabited and public areas which constitute
about 85% of the line. Fencing is generally be 6 foot high, heavy duty
chain link fence placed along the railroad property lines. Q: Who do I contact if I see an emergency
situation such as children playing on the tracks or to report vandalism? A:
Call 911. Your local police and fire departments will contact the MBTA
as required. The MBTA Police can be contacted in an emergency at
617-222-1212. Resources
for Additional Information Q:
Where can I get further information about the project? A:
The Final Environmental Impact Report for the project is available on the
MBTA’s website (www.mbta.com) under About
the MBTA – T Projects – Greenbush Project – Environmental Impact Report.
Information about construction is available on the project website at www.cbbgreenbush.com. Q:
Who do I call if I have a question or concern about construction
activities? A:
Call the Greenbush Hotline at 781-682-6350. Q:
Who do I contact if I have a question or concern about the trains after
construction is complete? HOME | Route Map | The Project | Project Schedule | FAQ | Project Quality | Online Info | The Team | Partnership | Contacts |