Boston, Massachusetts: MBTA Green Line Shutdown Will Add 25 Minutes or More to Halloween Weekend Trips

Boston riders heading out for Halloween should build a different trip this weekend. The MBTA will suspend Green Line service west of North Station on Saturday, October 31 and Sunday, November 1 to complete signal upgrades in the central subway, and the agency estimates some trips will take at least 25 minutes longer than normal, Boston 25 News reported on Thursday.

The MBTA listed the closure in its October 23 T-Alerts digest, and local outlets have repeated the warning as the weekend approaches. The Patriot Ledger set out the same closure on Wednesday, October 28, and Boston University's Daily Free Press published the branch by branch replacement plan from the MBTA website.

Which sections close

On the B branch, no Green Line trains will run between North Station and Babcock Street. On the C and D branches, service will be suspended between North Station and Kenmore. On the E branch, service will be suspended between North Station and Heath Street. In short, the Green Line will be entirely closed west of North Station for the two days.

How riders get around it

Shuttle buses will replace service between Copley and Babcock Street, and buses will run between Kenmore and Back Bay for C and D branch riders, according to the MBTA plan carried by the Daily Free Press. Route 39 buses will replace E branch service between Heath Street and Back Bay. The Orange Line will replace service between Back Bay and North Station.

Both Route 39 and Route 57 bus service will be fare free during the closure. Commuter Rail rides on the Framingham/Worcester Line will also be free between Lansdowne, Back Bay and South Station. Accessible van shuttles will be available between Kenmore, Copley and Back Bay, and North Station for riders who prefer not to use a shuttle bus, the MBTA said. All shuttles are accessible and equipped with a ramp or lift.

Why the T is closing the tunnel on a weekend

The shutdown exists to protect earlier work. Lisa Battiston, deputy press secretary for the MBTA, told the Daily Free Press that the branches must shut down on weekends to maintain the results of the 2024 Track Improvement Plan, which removed more than 220 speed restrictions and replaced over 250,000 feet of rail across the system. The central signal system tells train operators how fast they can drive and lets the control center track where trains are.

"This work cannot be performed during the overnight hours when the MBTA does not operate," Battiston wrote. A spokesperson told Boston 25 News the shutdown is necessary to maintain previous infrastructure improvements and continue modernization work on the transit system.

More disruption follows

This is not the last Green Line weekend like this. Boston 25 News reported that riders should also expect additional Green Line work and similar service disruptions the following weekend. For this weekend, the practical advice from every account is the same: check the replacement route before leaving, use the free buses and the free Commuter Rail segment where they help, and add at least 25 minutes to any trip that crosses the closed section.