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On the Trans Blog
Haverhill Route 110 Dedication

A section of Route 110 in Haverhill is now officially known as Emilio Brothers Memorial Highway, following dedication ceremonies earlier this month at Haverhill City Hall.

The four Emilio Brothers served their country with heroism during World War II. The legislature approved and Governor Deval Patrick this year signed legislation naming in their honor the portion of Route 110 from the Methuen line to Maxwell Street. MassDOT erected a marker of designation along Route 110.

Hanover-Hanson Bridge Opens 20 Months Early

The Patrick-Murray Administration announced that the Broadway Street Bridge over the Indian Head River connecting Hanover and Hanson opened 20 months ahead of schedule. The project is part of Governor Deval Patrick's historic Accelerated Bridge Program to reverse years of neglect and significantly reduce the state's backlog of structurally deficient bridges.

The project replaced the existing deteriorated bridge built in 1907 and rebuilt in 1930. The original completion date for the $1.4 million project was May 2012. Last fall, MassDOT offered local officials and legislators a proposal to shorten the construction schedule and save $200,000 by changing to a precast bridge structure that eliminated construction in phases in favor of closing the bridge with detour. The work began in April and was completed in seven months, 20 months ahead of the original schedule.

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The Road to Reform

MBTA: Real-Time Train Apps Released

Developers are moving quickly to release applications that show real-time Orange, Red, and Blue Line information, less than two weeks after Lieutenant Governor Tim Murray announced the availability of real-time train location and arrival information for the MBTA's Orange, Red, and Blue Lines. The information provides MBTA riders with an answer to where there train is and when it will arrive.

By releasing this data, the MBTA gave innovative software developers the tools they needed to build applications and service to put this information in the hands of riders. Below are four applications already launched through a number of different applications and websites.

In addition to these four applications, more than one dozen applications using MBTA real-time bus or trip planning information are available at www.mbta.com/apps, a resource for MBTA riders looking for real-time information.

Fall River - New Bedford Transit Boost

Lieutenant Governor Tim Murray in Fall River this week announced that the Southeastern Regional Transit Authority (SRTA) will receive 10 new, energy efficient buses to serve public transit customers in the Fall River and New Bedford area. The Lieutenant Governor also announced that American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) federal stimulus funds along with other federal transit funds will allow the SRTA to purchase 10 new demand response vehicles that provide transportation to riders unable to use regular bus routes, along with upgrades to the transit authority's maintenance facilities.

The $3.1 million purchase of 10 new buses, nine funded by a Federal Transit Administration capital grant with state match and one paid for with federal stimulus ARRA funds replaces buses purchased 19 years ago that are beyond their useful service life. The new diesel technology allows the buses to emit 90% fewer exhaust emissions. In addition, $700,000 in federal stimulus ARRA funds will purchase six of the Demand Response Vehicles to accommodate riders with disabilities who are unable to use regular bus services, along with maintenance facilities upgrades that include replacement of 30-year old HVAC systems at facilities in Fall River and New Bedford, and OperationsControlCenter software improvements.

Visit the Patrick-Murray Administration’s automatically-updated interactive web-based map at www.mass.gov/massdot/recovery to view the latest information about all American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA) transportation projects.

Craigie Drawbridge Project
November Lane Closures

View Detour Map

As part of the Craigie Drawbridge Rehabilitation Project, all inbound travel lanes on Route 28 southbound at the intersection of Land Boulevard will close effective November 6, 2010, for approximately one month. The Craigie Drawbridge carries McGrath O’Brien Highway (Route 28) between Land Boulevard in Cambridge and Leverett Circle in Boston. The Craigie project is one of several Charles River Basin Bridges to be rehabilitated as part of the Patrick-Murray Administration's historic Accelerated Bridge Program to repair structurally deficient bridges across the Commonwealth.

Detours as part of the November 6 closure include:

  • Traffic trying to access I-93 and Storrow Drive will be detoured east over the Gilmore (Prison Point) Bridge towards Bunker Hill Community College/City Square.
  • Traffic heading to I-93 Northbound will be directed left through Sullivan Square, while traffic trying to access I-93 Southbound and Route 1 via the Tobin Bridge will be directed to turn right.
  • Traffic traveling to the Charles Circle Area will be detoured westbound down Land Boulevard to the Longfellow Bridge to cross the Charles River.

Outbound traffic leaving Boston through Leverett Circle will be unaffected during this period. Access to the Museum of Science will not be restricted but patrons are advised to approach the Museum from Boston to avoid anticipated traffic congestion on the Cambridge side of the project.

For more information on the Craigie Drawbridge Rehabilitation project, visit MassDOT's Charles River Basin Bridges web page.

Green Line Extension Update

Posted by: Kate Fichter, Green Line Extension Project Manager

We're pleased to announce the creation of a Green Line Extension Design Working Group electronic discussion group. This group hosts discussions among members of the Design Working Group and GLX staff. The group was created so that all email discussions by members are archived and open to the public. Anyone interested may join this group and read the discussion. The posting of messages is limited to members of the Design Working Group and GLX project staff. Messages and archived discussion can be found at the group home page: http://groups.yahoo.com/group/GLX_DWG/.

Meeting summaries from the September public meetings in Somerville and Medford have also been posted to the project website. Should you have any questions, please contact me at katherine.fichter@state.ma.us.

MassDOT Board November Public Meeting

The Massachusetts Department of Transportation Board of Directors will hold its next public business meeting on Wednesday, November 3, 1:00pm, MBTA Board Room, Suite 3910, State Transportation Building, Boston.

The MBTA Board will meet first at 1pm, followed by the MassDOT Board. All meetings are open to the public.

The meeting schedule is available on the MassDOT website.