Longfellow Bridge Repairs: Red Line to be Disrupted

Diverging Route wrote:Diverging Route's office looks at the project. It's pretty neat!

Will you be posting pictures? They would be much appreciated!

Diverging are u gonna post pictures here?

Mbta fan wrote:Diverging are u gonna post pictures here?

Diverging Route is traveling for a few weeks. Check back in April

Ok thanks for the info

Here's a picture from this morning, from Diverging Route's "tower."

Great view, DR! Please keep us out-of-towners updated!

Here's a picture from this morning, from Diverging Route's "tower."

Note the sand-colored area near the center of the photo, on the western third of the bridge. This is the first section of new decking going on, and the process will continue Boston-bound. When this third of the bridge is completed, the Boston-bound Red Line tracks will be shifted to the new outer section via a shoo-fly, about where the lead car of the Red Line train is in the picture.

Well! It's been a long time. But things are about to become interesting:

Overnight Closures of Longfellow Bridge, November 2 – 6

MassDOT’s contractor, White-Skanska-Consigli JV (WSC), will close the Longfellow Bridge overnight to all vehicular traffic from Monday, November 2 through Friday, November 6. The closure will begin at 11:00 PM each night and the bridge will reopen to vehicular traffic at 5:00 AM the following morning. The closures are necessary for preliminary preparations for the installation of the temporary MBTA Red Line track on the downstream roadway. Boston-bound vehicles should use the inbound detour routes described below. Bike and pedestrian traffic will be maintained across the bridge at all times. No closures will be implemented within one hour before and after all events at TD Garden to minimize traffic impacts at Leverett Circle.

Rescheduled: The previously announced traffic shift on the Longfellow Bridge, will now begin on Monday, November 9 and last for three months. MassDOT's contractor will shift vehicle, bike, and pedestrian travel spaces on the bridge to accommodate modified Stage 2 early construction of the Red Line temporary track on the downstream roadway. From November 9, 2015 through January 2016, WSC will also close the Longfellow Bridge to all vehicular traffic overnight, Mondays through Fridays from 9:00 PM each night to 5:00 AM the following morning. The closure may extend to Saturday nights, if needed. Bike and pedestrian access will be maintained at all times. For more information, read the Modified Stage 2 Advisory. View the Modified Stage 2 Graphic and the Stage 3 Graphic for new travel space configurations.

Diverging Route will be away for a bit, but when he returns, he will post pictures of the progress from his Tower above the work site.

https://twitter.com/TransitMark/status/ ... 7016116224

This was just posted to Twitter showing the Red Line track being constructed on the roadway. This is pretty crazy.

I regularly bike across the Longfellow and thus have gotten a front row seat (side note - removing the outbound bike lane and narrowing the inbound one to make room for the shoo fly track is terribly inconvenient and dangerous). There is currently a temp barrier along the edge of the road almost all the way from the Cambridge side, beginning just after the track access gate, to Charles/MGH. Then there are just cones for a short distance to where the roadway shifts for the station platform. They've laid one short track panel at the Cambridge end, as you can see in the video Kieran linked to, resting directly on the pavement. I assume it will be ballasted in some way.

kieran wrote:...Red Line track being constructed on the roadway. This is pretty crazy.

Why? There were originally tracks in the same position in both directions, and this won't be the first time rapid transit cars traveled over the roadway either.

CRail wrote:

kieran wrote:...Red Line track being constructed on the roadway. This is pretty crazy.

Why? There were originally tracks in the same position in both directions, and this won't be the first time rapid transit cars traveled over the roadway either.

Temporary shift during Phase 2 of the Longfellow Bridge rehab project. Phase 2 replaces the steel and concrete deck supporting the inbound redline track to Boston. Inbound Boston trains will travel on the existing outbound to Cambridge track and the shoo-fly will carry the outbound to Cambridge redline trains. All traffic, pedestrians and bikes will be shifted to the inbound side (side currently being worked on) in January/February

As of December 6
1. Top layer of asphalt removed from the traffic lane being commandeered. (complete)
2. Barrier (Jersey barriers) set between track area and remaining lane space. (Cambridge end almost to Charles Station)
3. Ties set down. (Cambridge end almost to Charles Station)
4. Running rails fastened to ties. (Cambridge end almost to Charles Station)
5. Ballast added, held between Jersey barriers and existing curb. (Cambridge end about halfway across bridge)
6. Third rail added. (not started yet)
7. At the Boston end, erect a ramp for the track to reach the level of Charles Station. (not started yet)

View looking towards Cambridge. The salt and pepper towers are behind. View looking towards Boston

New Years Day 2015.

The straight part of the temporary track has been ballasted and tamped and the supports (chairs) for the third rail are mostly in place.

At the Cambridge end, the connection to the main tracks is over land. But at the Boston end, the connection is on bridge structure. So the rebuilding of the latter portion over Storrow Drive (freeway) will be a little more complicated due to operating trains.

The view from Tower One on the Cambridge side.