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MBTA to Suspend Harvard-Alewife Red Line Service Starting Monday

A new train with red trim waits at an empty subway platform.

The first new CRRC-manufactured Red Line train waits at Alewife station on January 6, 2023. Courtesy of the MBTA.

The MBTA will suspend Red Line service for 10 days from Monday, February 5th to Wednesday, February 14th between Alewife and Harvard stations.

During the same period, the T will also extend the closure for night work from Alewife to Park Street every evening from 8:45 PM to end of service.

This suspension will take place to advance the MBTA–wide Track Improvement Plan, so that MBTA crews can do work (i.e., spot repairs, tie replacements, rail replacement, ballast replacement) to address the root causes of speed restrictions across the subway lines.

There are currently four slow zones between Alewife and Harvard, and 9 more speed restrictions in place between Harvard and Park Street stations.

An MBTA map that has black dotted line from Alewife to Harvard that indicates shuttle service, a red dotted line between Harvard and Park St that indicates shuttle service after 8:45 PM, and a solid red arrow that indicates regular service for the rest of the Ashmont/Braintree line.
Courtesy of the MBTA.

Here are some tips to still get around during the Red Line closures:

  • There will be free shuttle bus service that will make stops at all of the stations between Alewife and Harvard and Alewife to Park Street.
    • More information from the MBTA can be found here.
  • The Commuter Rail will be free between Porter Square and North Station.
  • Plan extra time in commutes to anticipate longer than normal wait times for trains.

Riders can also find information on service changes via in-station signage, in-station public announcements, at mbta.com/alerts, speaking to Transit Ambassadors and MBTA staff on-site, subscribing to T-Alerts or following the MBTA on X (formerly known as Twitter) @MBTA, @MBTA_CR, and @MBTA_CR_Alerts.

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