Your Green Line Commute May One Day Be Faster

Photo By Olga Khvan

The MBTA is considering scrapping some of the stops along the Green Line’s B branch near Boston University to expedite riders’ commutes, and keep the trains from frequently stopping to pick up more passengers.

On Thursday, October 23, officials from the transit agency will meet at the Boston Public Library to go over a new plan to consolidate four stops along Commonwealth Avenue. According to details about the meeting, which will be hosted by Senator William Brownsberger and Senator Cynthia Creem, the proposed project would turn the BU West, St. Paul, Babcock, and Pleasant Street stops into two stations, providing faster travel times and improving rider safety.

“Green Line customers commonly ask if it is necessary for the trolleys to make so many stops along Commonwealth Avenue,” said MBTA spokesman Joe Pesaturo in an email to Boston. Asked when the T first started talking about consolidating these stops, Pesaturo replied “decades ago.”

As it stands, there are currently three stops dedicated to access to BU’s campus, followed by several additional stops in close proximity to those outdoor stations. Getting rid of a few of those stops along the B Line “would better serve the Boston University and Commonwealth Avenue community, as well as all MBTA customers in this very congested corridor,” according to a press release from Brownsberger’s office.

Brownsberger, who has been calling for vast improvements to the dilapidated and aging Green Line trains and service, said he was “grateful” that T personnel are considering the proposal.

During the meeting, transit officials with knowledge of the project are expected to present the public with cost and funding estimates, the 30 percent design of the eventual construction project, and the possible locations of the new stops. They will also be taking questions from those curious about the changes.

The meeting tailgates on the “Green Line Forum” hosted by Brownsberger and others, which was also at Boston Public Library, back in May.

If you go: Thursday, October 23, 6 to 8 p.m., Boston Public Library in Copley Square.