The Red Line Had a Small Derailment Problem This Morning

Service was out for over three hours between Ashmont and JFK/UMass, but you probably noticed.


red line train

Photo by Margaret Burdge

Thought your commute was bad already? The Red Line says, “hold my beer.”

A Red Line train derailed at Ashmont Tuesday morning around 5:30 a.m. It didn’t get back on track until just after 9 a.m., meaning commuters were out of luck all of rush hour.

MBTA shuttles replaced train service between Ashmont and JFK/UMass, riding along Dorchester Avenue in that sweet, sweet rush hour traffic. Luckily, passengers coming from the Braintree direction were not affected.

The wayward train thankfully wasn’t carrying any passengers when it went off the rails at the Ashmont train yard, before even entering the station for its morning run. Only one car out of a six car train jumped ship, per the Boston Globe, but that was apparently enough to send the entire commute into a tizzy.

According to the MBTA, the train got back on track (literally) a little before 8 a.m., but the tracks still needed to be repaired before they could be used.

Commuters expecting to board their regular train and zone out to a podcast Tuesday morning were instead greeted with the dreaded replacement street shuttles. Although trains resumed at JFK/UMass, the buses and transfer added a good chunk of time to the journey.

Apparently, some commuters even turned to a different line altogether to get them to work.

The worst may be over, but delays may continue while the angry mobs and backed up trains disperse.