T tells riders, plan on slow going

The MBTA is telling riders to build in extra time to their commute on the Red, Orange, Blue, Green and Mattapan lines as track engineers continue a set of inspections launched last week.

“MBTA crews remain in the field verifying that speeds are appropriate for sections of track identified by recent geometry car testing that may require mitigation,” the agency said in an alert Sunday night.

The track inspections come after a site visit by the state’s Department of Public Utilities last week.

The T initially on Thursday implemented a set of global speed restrictions of 10-25 mph system wide.

“We understand that riders are frustrated, and we thank them for their patience as we work hard to deliver the reliable system they expect and deserve,” said MBTA Interim General Manager Jeffrey Gonneville. “The decision to implement these speed restrictions was taken because the safety of our riders and employees is a top priority. We will continue to keep riders updated as we develop a timeline for the completion of this work and a return to a more normal schedule.”

In its current update, the T says that about 32 percent of the system remains under speed restrictions in the form of so-called “block speed restrictions” which focus on track sections identified for close examinations.

According to the T, there are 19 block speed restrictions on the Orange Line, 39 on the Red Line and six on the Blue line. Those speed restrictions are in addition to the speed restrictions that had been in place prior to last week’s system-wide slow order.

from Boston Herald https://ift.tt/dlij6xo