Silver Line

MBTA Silver Line

MBTA Neoplan AN460LFs in Silver Line duty. The bus on the left is an AN460LF CNG on the Washington Street line, and the bus on the right is an AN460LF dual mode trackless trolley on the SL1 Airport line.
Parent	Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority
Founded	2002 (Washington Street) 2004 (Airport/Waterfront)
Headquarters	10 Park Plaza, Boston, MA 02116
Locale	Boston, Massachusetts
Service type	Bus rapid transit
Routes	4
Stations	13 (Washington St.) 9 (Airport/Waterfront)
Fleet	20 (Washington Street) 32 (Airport/Waterfront)
Daily ridership	14,709 (2005 Washington Street)[1] + 11,006 (2006 Waterfront)[2]
Operator	MBTA
Chief executive	William Mitchell (acting)
Web site	MBTA Silver Line

The Silver Line is the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA)'s sole bus rapid transit (BRT) line. It operates in two sections; the first runs from Dudley Square in Roxbury to downtown Boston, Massachusetts and South Station, mostly via Washington Street, with buses operating in reserved lanes; the second runs from South Station to several points in South Boston and to Logan Airport in East Boston, partly in a dedicated bus tunnel and on dedicated surface right-of-way. Riders can transfer between the sections at South Station.

Service routes

Waterfront: SL1 and SL2

Dual-mode bus departing South Station to serve the SL2 Waterfront Line.

Two Silver Line services operate in a tunnel from South Station to Boston's World Trade Center, then on a reserved surface right of way for another half-mile further east to Silver Line Way, and afterwards in mixed traffic:

• SL1 Logan Airport-South Station
• SL2 Design Center-South Station

Buses on these services are powered by overhead electrical wires from South Station to Silver Line Way, and continue on thereafter on diesel power. Thus, buses that travel the full lengths of SL1 and SL2 are by necessity dual-mode buses. Supplemental service is provided between South Station and Silver Line Way by trolleybuses.

SL1 buses operate in a loop at Logan Airport and only serve the terminals, at the arrivals level. The Silver Line stops at the curb at the "downstream" end of each terminal (in terms of traffic flow). Free shuttle buses connecting the terminals and other airport destinations, including the Airport station on the Blue Line, hotels, rental cars, and the water taxi. A system of moving walkways connects terminals A and E, the Hilton Hotel and central parking. See the Logan Airport article for lists of which airlines serve each terminal.

Fares

Passengers travelling on SL1 and SL2 pay the standard MBTA subway fare: $1.70 when using a CharlieCard, $2.00 when using CharlieTickets or cash. Ticket vending machines that accept cash and credit cards are installed in the Logan Airport terminals and World Trade Center, Courthouse, and South Stations. A faregate- and cost-free transfer to and from the Red Line is available at South Station for all SL1 and SL2 riders, but only CharlieCard users get free transfers to other bus and subway lines if they leave the paid fare area.

SL1 and SL2 station listing

Courthouse Station

Dual-mode bus on the Boston Silver Line.

Washington Street: SL4 and SL5

Two Silver Line services run between Dudley Square in Roxbury and downtown Boston along Washington Street in reserved bus lanes:

• SL4 Dudley Station-South Station
• SL5 Dudley Station-Downtown

These two services share most of their route from Dudley Square to Chinatown; SL5 continues northward to Downtown Crossing and Boylston stations, whereas SL4 heads east on Essex Street to South Station.^[3] Passengers can transfer to SL1 and SL2 buses at South Station; however, SL4 buses stop at a surface bus stop across the street from the station complex, whereas SL1 and SL2 buses stop at an underground stop within the station, so there is no direct transfer or capability for through service.

Fares

Passengers travelling on SL4 and SL5 pay the standard MBTA bus fare: $1.25 when using a CharlieCard, $1.50 when using a CharlieTicket or cash. At select stations, passengers can transfer from the Silver Line to the subway (Red, Green, and Orange Lines) for an additional 45 cents (CharlieCard) or 50 cents (CharlieTicket or cash). At these same stations, passengers may transfer from the subway to the Silver Line for free.^[4]

SL4 and SL5 station listing

Equipment

Dual-mode buses are used on the SL1 and SL2 services, while articulated buses are used on the SL4 and SL5 services. Silver Line buses are wheelchair ramp-equipped, using a kneeling bus and a flip-out ramp. (See MBTA accessibility for more information.)

History

The collection of services currently branded under the Silver Line umbrella have varying origins. The first section opened, known as Silver Line Phase I, was the line along Washington Street currently referred to as SL5; it is the ultimate product of community demands for restoration of local service after the Washington Street Elevated portion of the Orange Line was demolished in the 1980s.^{[citation needed]} Proposals to build a new subway line under Washington Street or a new trolley line along Washington Street were deemed impractical, so the Orange Line was re-routed about 1/2 mile west onto the Southwest Corridor right-of-way, leaving many local residents without a rapid-transit option. Eventually, BRT was chosen to provide this service, and the MBTA feels it meets the needs of the communities affected by the Orange Line relocation^{[citation needed]}. The line started running July 20, 2002, replacing service provided by the 49 bus (which had existed as a feeder route before 1987).

A Silver Line trolley bus at Courthouse station. This 40' model was used in the early days of the service, but has since been transferred to Cambridge operations.

The tunneled section extending east of South Station, known as Silver Line Phase II, was constructed in conjunction with Boston's Big Dig and was originally referred to as the South Boston Piers Transitway. Tunnel sections were fabricated in a nearby, World War II-era dry dock and floated into place. Phase II opened on Friday, December 17, 2004, with the first route (Silver Line Waterfront, referred to within the MBTA as 746) running only to Silver Line Way, using electric trolley buses.

When dual-mode buses were placed in service on December 31, 2004, two routes, dubbed SL2 and SL3, began service. As not enough dual-mode buses were available initially, some rush-hour service was provided by CNG buses, with transfers at Silver Line Way. Through service was suspended after January 5, 2005, and was not brought back until March 5, with all buses dual-mode starting on March 14. Beginning on March 26, late night and weekend trips ran combined, running both around the BMIP loop and to City Point. SL3 ran to City Point via the Boston Marine Industrial Park; it ceased operation in 2008. ^[6][7]

SL1 service to Logan Airport began on an interim bases on January 2, 2005. CNG buses ran on a Sunday-only (4 pm - 10 pm only) shuttle route between Silver Line Way and the airport terminals. The agreement with the Massachusetts Department of Environmental Protection had called for airport service by January, but the MBTA did not have enough buses for full service.[2]. Full-time SL1 service began on June 1, 2005.

One more service, to Andrew Station or South Boston, possibly via the Boston Convention and Exhibition Center and D Street,^[8] was once under consideration, but has never been implemented.

Stop at South Station for the SL4 bus service that connects the two halves of the Silver Line. Service began October 13, 2009. South Station is in the background, across Atlantic Avenue. Note red "bus only" lane on Essex Street, in front of the bus shelter.

For nearly five years after the opening of Silver Line Phase II, the two segments of the Silver Line were disconnected from one another. The MBTA has long-term plans to connect the two via an underground tunnel; the construction of this section, dubbed Silver Line Phase III, has been repeatedly postponed due to cost and ridership concerns (see below for more details).

A interim solution that did not require a new tunnel opened on October 13, 2009, after fast-track construction using federal stimulus money. The new route, SL4, covers much of the same ground as the proposed Phase III in a dedicated bus lane on the surface. When SL4 began operation, the existing Silver Line Washington Street service was rebranded SL5.

As of the day that SL4 began service, there were 29,670 Silver Line boadings per weekday: 14,709 on SL5, and 14,961 on SL1 & SL2.

Future development

Phase III

The proposed Phase III will connect the first two phases of the Silver Line via an underground busway from Boylston station on the Green Line to South Station, allowing a single-seat ride between the phases. Silver Line Phase III received a "not recommended" rating from the Federal Transit Administration,^[9][10] which expressed skepticism that the T's operating cost estimates were reliable. Capital cost was estimated at $780 million at the time, but this price tag depended upon the route selected. Completion was estimated by 2013.

Four possible routings were debated,^[11] but neighborhood opposition to the placement of portals, and to the use of BRT as a replacement for the Washington Street Elevated was problematic. In August, 2005, the MBTA put the Phase III project "on hold" in order to avoid a second such determination, and to build community consensus on a locally preferred routing.[3].

In February 2006, Massachusetts State Transportation Secretary John Cogliano proposed a much less expensive plan that would eliminate most of the tunneling, running the Silver Line on the surface via Kneeland Street to a new tunnel portal on Essex Street, near South Station. The estimated cost of this proposal was $94 million and it includes expansion of Silver Line service to Copley Square, Grove Hall, Mattapan, and Ashmont, connecting at the Fairmount commuter rail line.^[12]

In March 2006, yet another plan was put forward, with support from most transportation leaders, including Cogliano. The plan was a fifth underground variation, calling for a mile-long tunnel with a portal at Charles Street and Tremont Street. [4] Environmental review and preliminary engineering were expected to be completed by the end of 2008.^[13] A federal funding decision is expected in 2010, with construction, if approved, starting in 2011 and ending in 2016.^[11] The MBTA is managing project planning. As of May 2009, the estimated price of the tunnel plan, dubbed the "Little Dig," had risen to $2.1 billion and its future was in doubt.^[14]

Other future BRT

Along with the new SL4 connection, a new BRT corridor will be created along what is currently the number 28 bus route which stretches from Mattapan Station to Ruggles Station. The new corridor will include the installation of dedicated bus lanes, bus signal priority, and on-platform fare collection. The whole project is expected to be finished by January 2012.^[15]

In addition to the Silver Line and the planned corridor along bus route 28, BRT is being considered as a means of implementing the Urban Ring Project and providing improved crosstown service.

Silver Line critiques

Detractors of Silver Line service^[who?] insist that BRT is still a bus, not a high-speed transit line, and provides equivalent quality and speed to other buses. Community groups in the Roxbury and South End neighborhoods, along with the Sierra Club, have presented findings that support this argument, and maintain that a light-rail line would be both cheaper and more effective than BRT. These groups sometimes refer to the Silver Line Phase I as the "#49 bus" (this being the bus line with an identical routing that the Silver Line replaced) and the "Silver Lie" (used because of allegations from advocacy groups that the MBTA reneged on a promise of real rapid transit). Furthermore, the necessity to link Roxbury and Logan is not well explicated in any MBTA document.

Some^[who?] have argued that BRT was the only way that the Silver Line could provide service to Logan Airport, because the Ted Williams Tunnel that runs to Logan is an Interstate Highway (I-90), and Interstate Highway standards do not allow rail tracks in the road surface. However, opponents of this viewpoint note that Interstate Highway standards make no mention of rail tracks (other than a prohibition of non-grade separated crossings), and insist that the Silver Line's separate right-of-way within the tunnel would preclude it from having to meet highway regulations.^{[original research?]} Furthermore, the Blue Line passes near the airport but requires a time-consuming and crowded shuttle to access the terminals. During an early-2000s Logan Airport modernization, when a complex of new highway ramps were built, the MBTA and MassPort originally planned a people mover from the new Blue Line Airport station to the terminal area,^{[citation needed]} but this plan was dropped.

The Silver Line's SL1 route from the World Trade Center stop to the Ted Williams Tunnel is considered by critics to be unnecessarily convoluted. Despite the fact that the Silver Line's portal is less than 100 yards (91 m) from the eventual entry ramp to the Williams Tunnel, the line must cross D Street at grade and proceed to the Silver Line Way stop to change over from overhead electric to diesel. This requires a loop back towards downtown on several surface streets before it can enter the tunnel, adding several minutes to the ride. The inbound route makes a stop above ground at the entrance to the World Trade Center stop, proceeds to Silver Line Way, and then goes underground for a second stop at the World Trade Center. If the headway between buses is as close as seven minutes, it is faster for travelers in the rear bus to disembark at the above-ground WTC stop, walk down the stairs, and then board the bus that used to be in front of them than to remain on the bus they started on^{[original research?]}. For some time after the Big Dig ceiling collapse in 2006, the SL1 used a closer entrance ramp normally reserved for the Massachusetts State Police. However, use of this shortcut was stopped for safety reasons^{[citation needed]} after the affected sections of roadway were reopened for Silver Line use.

References

1. ^ Spring 2005 counts from CTPS, obtained by public information request from the MBTA.
2. ^ Spring 2006 counts for typical weekday, obtained by public information request from tha MBTA.
3. ^ New Silver line service, MBTA press release, October 13, 2009
4. ^ Transfer policy: http://mbta.com/fares_and_passes/charlie/?id=5602
5. ^ Association for Public Transportation, Car-Free in Boston, A Guide for Locals and Visitors, 10th ed. (2003), p.117.
6. ^ http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2008/09/14/mbta_reviewing_bus_routes_as_it_considers_service_changes/
7. ^ Compare http://www.mbta.com/uploadedFiles/Documents/Schedules_and_Maps/Bus/silverwatermap.pdf to http://www.mbta.com/uploadedFiles/documents/Documents/Schedules_and_Maps/Bus/silverwatermap.pdf
8. ^ http://www.bostonmpo.org/bostonmpo/resources/CMS/cmssubway.htm
9. ^ MBTA puts hold on 3d, final phase of its Silver Line - The Boston Globe
10. ^ Federal Transit Administration (2003-11). "Silver Line Phase III: Boston, Massachusetts" (DOC). Press release. http://www.fta.dot.gov/documents/Bos1AA.doc. Retrieved 2008-10-14. "The overall project rating of Not Recommended is based on MBTA’s unreasonable operating cost assumptions. In addition, although FTA is reporting MBTA’s ridership forecasts above, FTA has concerns about their validity and is thus not evaluating the project’s justification criteria." 
11. ^ ^{a b} MBTA Transit Projects: Silver Line Phase 3
12. ^ [1]
13. ^ MySouthEnd.com - Local news and entertainment for Boston's Historic South End
14. ^ Little Dig in Danger, Boston Globe, May 10, 2009
15. ^ Mattapan Bus Rapid Transitand South Station Direct Connect Project Massachusetts Exectuive Office of Transportation. May 2009.

External links

• MBTA - Silver Line
• MBTA's allaboutsilverline.com
• nycsubway.org - Boston Transit: The Silver Line
• BadTransit - The Silver Line Fall 2003 Update
• Changes to Transit Service in the MBTA district (PDF)
• A High-tech Keep Out - A wayward SUV no match for security at MBTA tunnel
  • The Video of an SUV trying to enter South Station - The MBTA's rising security floor barricade in action.

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