71/73 have been running trackless on Saturdays for the last several years (pre-COVID), following the restoration of tracklesses on the 73 after the Trapelo/Belmont reconstruction. The main interruption has been due to other construction projects along the route which sometimes dieselize either midday or Saturday ops. But more often that not trackless did run on Saturday up until the reduction in services in March.
Right now, it doesn't make sense to have North Cambridge open for so few vehicles overall, but I believe the T may have also gotten then Harvard trackless and vehicle which shall not be mentioned tunnel rehab started early this spring (they weren't able to complete the lower level last year), and have just consolidated all routes onto the upper level (Sunday operating plan).
Longer term, the T has announced that they want to convert North Cambridge to a prototype battery bus garage. There is much irony that they're taking the only existing electric garage to do so. There's some considerable activity in the advocacy community to see this changed to ensure that the first battery buses replace diesels or CNG, not tracklesses.
What would make it so it was worth running North Cambridge seven days a week? Maybe buying extended-range charge-in-motion trackless trolleys (in use elsewhere in the world) which could allow some other Harvard routes to be converted without needing much or any additional overhead. The 74, 75, 77, 78, and 96 could potentially benefit from this.
Wondering if I'll see the Western Route double-tracking finished before I retire...
Photo: Melbourne W7 No. 1019 on Route 78, Bridge & Church Streets, Richmond, Victoria. 10/21/2010