Boston, MA – August 24: The redline train departs from Savin Hill on Thursday. The MBTA announced that they will suspend service on the Red Line’s Ashmont Branch and Mattapan Line for more than two weeks in October to repair tracks and speed trains. (Photo by Erin Clark/The Boston Globe via Getty Images)
After 16 days of track work, the MBTA says a partial shutdown of the Red Line is over, and earlier speed restrictions have been lifted.
Shuttles buses were replacing rail service on the Ashmont Branch between JFK/UMass and Ashmont stations, and on the Mattapan Line between Ashmont and Mattapan stations, since Oct. 14. The MBTA said Monday that it had successfully completed "critical track work" and resumed full service.
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"The MBTA is proud to have successfully completed this critical work on an expedited timeline," General Manager Phillip Eng said in a statement. "As a result, Red Line and Mattapan Line riders are now experiencing safer, faster, and more reliable service."
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Crews replaced "nearly 5,000 feet of rail and 1,174 ties on the Ashmont Branch and nearly 4,700 feet of rail and 1,380 ties on the Mattapan Line," according to the MBTA.
The agency says slow zones — which have frustrated riders this year with sluggish commutes on many stretches of railway — will no longer be in place in the area affected by the partial shutdown.
"Following this work, all speed restrictions that were in place prior to the shutdown have been alleviated in this area, improving travel times by over 10 minutes for Ashmont Branch and Mattapan Line riders," the MBTA said.
