Blue Line (MBTA)
The Blue Line is a rapid transit line in the Greater Boston metropolitan area, one of four rapid transit lines operated by the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. It runs from Bowdoin station in downtown Boston under Boston Harbor to East Boston and Revere on the inner North Shore, where it terminates at Wonderland. The stop at Airport Station, by way of a free shuttle bus, is one of two rapid transit connections to Logan International Airport. In 1967, during a systemwide rebranding, the line was assigned the blue color because it passes under the Boston Harbor. With an end-to-end travel time of less than twenty minutes, the Blue Line is the shortest of Boston's heavy-rail lines and the only line to have both third rail and overhead catenary sections.
The East Boston Tunnel was built as a streetcar tunnel in 1904 with Howard A. Carson as chief engineer; after an extension to Bowdoin in 1916, it was converted to heavy rail metro rolling stock in 1924. In 1952 and 1954 the line was extended along the former route of the Boston, Revere Beach and Lynn Railroad, in a project intended to reach Lynn but ultimately cut short to Wonderland. Further extensions to Lynn and Charles/MGH downtown are long-planned but not yet funded. From approximately 1998–2011, the MBTA made most Blue Line stations fully accessible as part of a larger effort to accommodate 6-car trains on the line., the only station in service on the Blue Line which is not fully accessible is the downtown Boston terminus Bowdoin.
History
East Boston Tunnel
The East Boston Tunnel under Boston Harbor was the first North American subway tunnel to run beneath a body of water when it opened in 1904, and the second underwater vehicular tunnel of significant length built in the United States. The tunnel was constructed using a modified version of the Greathead Shield; of the tunnel is actually under water. The excavation took two-and-a-half years, and cost $3 million and the lives of four workmen.Initially used as a streetcar tunnel, it ran from Maverick Square in East Boston to downtown Boston's Court Street station, with an intermediate stop at Devonshire. Court Street had pedestrian access to Scollay Square station but transfers to the East Boston Tunnel required an additional fare of 1 cent. In 1906, Atlantic Station was opened, with a connection to the Atlantic Avenue Elevated. Court Street proved to be a problematic terminus as its single-track design limited frequent service.
Bowdoin extension
The Boston Transit Commission began construction of a extension of the East Boston Tunnel on November 29, 1912. The extension ran from Scollay Square to a new station and loop at Bowdoin Square. Tracks continued west under Cambridge Street to an incline at Joy Street, where streetcars could continue on surface tracks to Charles Street and the Longfellow Bridge to Cambridge.Court Street station was abandoned on November 15, 1914, with service cut back to Devonshire. On March 13, 1916, service was extended to the new Scollay Under, with streetcars looping empty around the Bowdoin loop. Bowdoin station opened on March 18 along with the Joy Street Portal, which was used by a Central Square–Orient Heights through line as well as several Cambridge lines that terminated at Scollay Under. The total cost of the extension was $2.4 million.
Metro conversion
The East Boston Tunnel was originally planned to be operated with high-floor metro rolling stock and connected to the then-planned Cambridge Elevated line. When that plan was dropped in 1903 due to a disagreement between the Boston Transit Commission and the BERy, the stations were built with low platforms. Large bi-loading streetcars, which incorporated many attributes from metro cars used on the Main Line Elevated, began use in 1905. However, neither these nor the large center-entrance cars introduced in 1917 could fully handle the crowds.In 1921, the Boston Transit Department —the successor to the BTC—began work at Maverick Square to convert the East Boston Tunnel to high-floor metro trains. The next year, the BTD board approved the construction of high-level platforms at the four downtown stations. The Maverick Square incline was replaced with Maverick station, which provided cross-platform transfers between tunnel trains and surface streetcars.
Over the weekend of April 18–21, 1924, the East Boston Tunnel was converted to use the new high-floor trains. The tightly staged changeover required 1500 men to complete. Temporary wooden platform sections were put in place to allow service to begin on April 21, with the permanent concrete sections completed over the following months. The edges of the original low platforms can still be seen under the high platforms at State and Aquarium. Rather than modify the narrow tunnel, the BERy elected to replace the streetcars with brand-new smaller-than-usual high-platform rapid transit cars which could operate in tight clearances—particularly around the tight loop at Bowdoin. Blue Line cars are thus long, substantially shorter than the Orange Line cars and the Red Line cars.
Revere extension
From 1952 to 1954, a surface-level extension was constructed along the recently defunct Boston, Revere Beach and Lynn Railroad, from Maverick to the current terminus at Wonderland. The original trackage had been narrow gauge, but was converted to standard gauge for this Revere Extension of the subway. The first above-ground station on the new extension served Boston's Logan Airport, and was the first American urban transit connection to a commercial airfield. Beyond Maverick, the power feed was changed from third rail to overhead catenary to reduce the risk of winter ice buildup due to proximity to the ocean.The line was officially renamed the East Boston Tunnel & Revere Extension by the MTA in 1952, and designated as "Route 3" on system maps. It was renamed as the Blue Line on August 26, 1965, as part of the new MBTA's color-based rebranding. The color blue represented water, as the line passes under Boston Harbor and travels near the coast for much of its length. Until the Silver Line was extended to Logan in 2004–05, the Blue Line was the only rapid transit connection to the airport.
On April 21, 2018, the SL3 Silver Line service to Chelsea opened with a connection to the Blue Line at Airport station, providing transfer service to Chelsea, the Seaport District and South Station.
Station renovations
Unlike the Red Line and Orange Line, which had substantial new sections and station renovations in the 1970s and 1980s, most of the Blue Line had not been substantially modified since 1954. By the 1990 passage of the Americans with Disabilities Act, only and the eastbound platform at were accessible, with then under construction. In 1988, the MBTA began planning for accessibility modifications as well as platform extensions to accommodate 6-car trains - similar to what had been done on the Orange and Red lines. The project was then expected to be complete in 1994. In 1989, the MBTA awarded design contracts for modernization and platform lengthening at nine Blue Line stations. Final design on a number of the modifications - the Blue Line Modernization Project - began in 1990–92.The first main construction phase of the project began on June 25, 1994, the line was cut back to at all times to permit reconstruction of the outer stations. and were completely rebuilt, while, and were renovated. A simultaneous $8 million noise reduction program added sound walls at Beachmont and Orient Heights, rubber mats under tracks, and soundproofing of nearby homes. The stations reopened on June 26, 1995. Unlike the other stations, Wood Island was not accessible after the 1994-95 renovation; elevators were not added until 2000.
was closed from October 14, 2000, until October 29, 2001, for renovations, which were completed in 2003. A relocated station opened on June 3, 2004. An extensive renovation of, during which the station remained open, lasted from November 2004 to May 2011. Sequential closures of Wonderland, Wood Island, Revere Beach, and Beachmont stations took place in June through November 2008 for platform repairs.
Reconstruction of began on October 4, 2005. The project was sufficiently progressed for six-car trains to enter service on September 15, 2008, though the station was not completed until 2009. Orient Heights was closed from March 23 to November 26, 2013, for a complete reconstruction. closed from March 22, 2014, to March 21, 2016, for a complete renovation and accessibility modifications. This left all Blue Line stations accessible except for, which also has an eastbound platform that cannot be modified for six-car trains.
Service between Bowdoin and Airport was replaced by buses from May 18–31, 2020, and April 25 to May 17, 2022, for track replacement and waterproofing work in the East Boston Tunnel. During the 2022 closure, temporary ferry service between Long Wharf and East Boston was also offered. An additional closure of the outer portion of the line from May 22 to June 8, 2022, allowed for repairs to the Suffolk Downs footbridge. No fares were charged on the Blue Line from July 5 to August 31, 2023, during a closure of the Sumner Tunnel.
Proposed expansions
Extension to Lynn
There is a proposal to extend the Blue Line northward to Lynn, Massachusetts. The land to extend the line was purchased for the initial construction of the Revere Extension, but due to budgetary constraints Wonderland station was designated the northern terminus. Two potential extension routes have been identified. One proposed path would run through marshland alongside the existing Newburyport/Rockport commuter rail line, on rail lines formerly operated by the Boston and Maine Railroad. An alternative route would extend the line alongside Revere Beach Boulevard through Point of Pines and the Lynnway, along the remainder of the BRB&L right of way. Other alternatives include increased commuter rail or bus service, or connecting the Blue Line to a commuter rail stop near Wonderland via a short connector.The Blue Line extension has been proposed in various forms for over 80 years. The 1926 Report on Improved Transportation Facilities and 1945–47 Coolidge Commission Report recommended that the East Boston Tunnel line, which had been converted to rapid transit from streetcars in 1924, be extended to Lynn via the Boston, Revere Beach & Lynn right-of-way. Ever since the 1954 Revere extension was cut short to Wonderland, a further extension to Lynn has been planned. Following on the 1926 and 1945-47 studies, the 1966 Program for Mass Transportation recommended that the Blue Line be extended to Lynn, while the 1969 Recommended Highway and Transit Plan proposed that the extension run as far as Salem. An extension was not present in the 1972 Final Report of the Boston Transportation Planning Review, but the 1974 Transportation Plan revived the project with possible termini of Lynn, Salem, or even Route 128 in Peabody. The 1978 Program for Mass Transportation report and 1983 Transportation Plan both continued support for an extension to Lynn. Despite the continued recommendations, however, other projects like extensions of the Red and Orange lines were given funding instead of the Blue Line.
In 2005, Lieutenant Governor Kerry Healey estimated construction would begin in 2017. Authorization to bond for planning money for the project was included in an April 2008 state bond bill, and $25 million in federal earmarks have been obtained. A 2004 state bond bill authorized $246.5 million on the condition of finding 50% non-state matching funds. The Draft Environmental Impact Report was expected to be complete by the end of 2008, but was delayed as planners focused on meeting the legal deadline for the Green Line extension to Somerville and Medford.