page_title: Green Line Extension
section_title: Terminus location
hierarchical_section_title: Green Line Extension / Criticism / Terminus location
caption_attribution_description: English: The old Lechmere Elevated (right) and construction of the new viaduct (left) on May 21, 2020, three days before Lechmere station closed for the demolition of the old viaduct and the construction of the new station and viaduct. Note the near complete absence of traffic at 5pm on a major road during what would normally be a Thursday evening rush hour, due to the w:COVID-19 pandemic in Massachusetts.
context_page_description: The Green Line Extension is an initiative to expand transit services in Greater Boston by extending the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority Green Line light rail beyond its current northern terminus at Lechmere in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The 4.3-mile extension is intended to improve mobility and regional access for residents in the densely populated municipalities of Somerville and Medford, two cities currently underserved by the MBTA relative to their population densities, commercial importance, and proximity to Boston.
  The project will extend service northward to Medford, near Tufts University, and to Union Square in Somerville using a two-branch operation, both branches to be operated within existing MBTA Commuter Rail rights-of-way. The extension is projected to have a total weekday ridership of about 52,000. The Green Line would see an increase in boardings of 30,700, and the MBTA system would see between 7,000 and 8,000 new transit users.
  While on the drawing board since 1990, the project has proceeded in fits and starts. Construction finally broke ground on Phase 1 of the Green Line Extension in 2012, with service targeted to begin in December 2021.
context_section_description: In 2008, the EPA ratified the Massachusetts State Implementation Plan (SIP) to include an amendment to the 1994 agreement that substituted the planned "the Green Line extension to Ball Square/Tufts University" with an "extension to Medford Hillside...[and] spur to Union Square".  Accordingly, the MBTA and MassDOT surveyed potential termini at the intersection of Winthrop Street and Boston Avenue, and also at Route 16 (Mystic Valley Parkway), but these locations were abandoned by the agencies, citing budgetary limitations.  Instead, the Green Line Extension was retracted by a mile to College Avenue, which is encompassed by Tufts University.
  The plan to terminate the GLX at College Avenue drew criticism from residents in Medford and Somerville, who questioned the advantages and legality of the move. A petition by the Medford Green Line Neighborhood Alliance to extend the Green Line argued that a Route 16 terminus would "provide Green Line access to thousands of people within a 10-minute walk," be "conveniently located on two major thoroughfares with existing bus connections," and "serve two large portions of Medford and Somerville designated as Environmental Justice Communities".
  In January 2012, the MBTA and MassDOT issued a response to questions from the public.  The document stated that "the position of MassDOT and the MBTA on the configuration of the Green Line Extension is supported and has been reinforced by multiple regulatory agencies overseeing the SIP, including MassDEP."  In concluding these comments, the MBTA stated that it would not respond to any further questions regarding College Avenue satisfying the Medford Hillside requirements of the SIP.
  Construction of the Route 16 station was planned from Boston MPO funds for 2016–2020 after the rest of the line was complete.  However, after the cost overrun this funding was reallocated to the main project.  Route 16 is still in the state's plan, with environmental review proceeding, as of 2017.
caption: New and old viaducts at Lechmere. Lechmere station closed on May 23, 2020 to allow the old viaduct to be partially demolished and connected to the new line north.
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