MBTA and federal transportation officials (including Mary Peters, the US Secretary of Transportation) met yesterday at the banks of the Mystic River and announced that a plan to construct a new $40 million Orange Line next to the Assembly Square Mall.
A rendering of the planned Assembly Square project in Somerville, the location of the proposed Orange Line Station.
The location of the new station would be between the Sullivan Square and Wellington stops. A new station in the proposed location would take advantage of a large new project in Somerville, known as Assembly Square. It is a massive mixed use project that the developer, Federal Realty describes as an “urban village.” Like other major projects in Boston (such as Seaport Square and Fan Pier), the project will include green space, office, retail, residential, and hotel space.
While the MBTA is in a serious financial funk, their initial investment in the construction of the new station would be minimal, as state officials have applied for $25 million from the federal government, and the other $15 million would be put up by Federal Realty as a part of their Assembly Square project. When asked what the likelihood of the federal government approving the request for funds, Federal Transit Administrator Jim Simpson seemed to see any reason why not:
I don’t see any reason why it wouldn’t get funded. -Jim Simpson, Federal Transit Administrator
If everything goes according to plan, officials would like to break ground on the new station in 2010 and complete the station by 2013.
Source: Metro
Image: Goody Clancy
Filed under: Infrastructure, Massachusetts, Orange Line, Proposal, Public Transportation, Somerville
