Boston Ruggles Station Improvements Underway

Ground Breaking Ceremony August 22 2017

Seeking to improve transit access for Boston's Longwood Medical Area (LMA) employees from suburbs to the south of Boston, the community's Medical Academic and Scientific Community Organization (MASCO) asked Jacobs Engineering in 2008 to evaluate possible changes to Ruggles Station that would enable improved frequencies of commuter rail trains stopping at the station.  

Lying less than three miles south of South Station, Ruggles Station is the MBTA’s busiest “inner ring” station with 1,800 daily commuters.  It serves the Providence, Stoughton, Needham, and Franklin commuter rail lines.  All commuter trains on these lines stop in the outbound evening peak at Ruggles, but less than two-thirds of trains during the inbound morning peak.  The principal reason for this imbalance lies in a station design deficiency.  The primary inbound Commuter Rail track (Track Two) does not have a passenger platform at Ruggles Station, making it difficult to operate full inbound peak service.  Three substantive topics were covered during this study to determine whether an investment at Ruggles was warranted:

1. Market Analysis: Jacobs estimated changes in MBTA ridership that would result from including Ruggles as a stop for all MBTA services passing through the station and estimated how many new Ruggles trips would be oriented toward the LMA.

2. Engineering Analysis: Jacobs developed, document and recommend options for the construction of a platform serving Track Two at Ruggles.

3. Economic Evaluation: Jacobs estimated  the costs and benefits of constructing the necessary facilities and adjusting operations for all MBTA Commuter Rail trains currently passing through Ruggles to stop at the station in the future, and compared Ruggles Station expansion with other public transport investments then consideration by the Commonwealth.

Currently, a very high level of Commuter Rail ridership exists at Ruggles Station despite the fact that only a fraction of morning peak trains passing the station stop to provide direct service.  As a result of this deficiency in service almost one third of the 1,800 round trip passengers in 2008 using Ruggles each weekday made a “detour” in the morning via Back Bay returning to Ruggles on the Orange Line adding approximately 13 minutes to their inbound trip.  This detour adds considerably to the overall commuter trip length for a railroad commuter and deters many from traveling to Ruggles from the southern suburbs by rail.

 

Consulting with MASCO, the MBTA, and Northeastern University, Jacobs developed a platform design for the unserved track. The design required use of a small part of adjacent property owned by Northeastern University.    The recommended design will simplify the MBTA’s operations by increasing service flexibility and reliability while also stimulating ridership.    Click here for more about MASCO's role in the project

Today the Massachusetts Governor and Secretary of Transportation and numerous other dignitaries announced that these recommended improvements would be moving forward at a Ruggles Station ground breaking .

“This investment will improve service for riders and access to neighborhoods and employers in Boston for all communities around this T stop,” said Governor Baker. “This new platform at Ruggles will reduce congestion and allow more trains to stop at this major and busy local hub for commuters throughout the region. We are grateful to our federal, local and community partners for their support in delivering more reliable service for the riders.”

“Ruggles Station is one of our busiest stations because it is a major hub for MBTA bus routes and a stop for commuter rail and for the Orange Line,” said Transportation Secretary and CEO Pollack. “Infrastructure improvements being made at Ruggles will make access to the system much easier for people with disabilities, for customers connecting from bus routes, for the local college and high school student population and for the public in general. These improvements are long-overdue and will vastly improve the customer experience and make for more efficient boarding and disembarking for commuter rail and subway riders.”

A total project cost of $38.5 million is supported by a $20 million federal Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) VI Grant awarded in October 2014, federal FTA funding of $6.8 million and state funding of $11.7 million from the MBTA Revenue Bond fund. With the design phase completed in January 2017, construction is scheduled to be performed from 2017 through 2019.

Governor Baker and Secretary Pollack were joined by MBTA Interim General Manager Steve Poftak, Keolis Commuter Services CEO and General Manager David Scorey, Congressman Mike Capuano, State Representative Chynah Tyler, Boston Transportation Department Commissioner Gina Fiandaca and Northeastern University Senior Vice President and General Counsel Ralph Martin.

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