The original plan for the Green Line Extension, terminating at Mystic Valley Parkway, was cut short to reduce the cost of the project. The Mystic Valley terminus strategically stopped short due to two significant engineering challenges: The railway bridge over the parkway would need to be expanded or rebuilt, and the current grade level crossings at Canal Street and High Street in West Medford would not support the addition of Green Line trains.
For my friends at Tufts considering westward travel, my advice is to look to the lowly bus. We have disdain for buses because they are unreliable creatures, but with a little love, we could turn the bus into a rubber-wheeled Green Line Extension. Imagine walking off the Green Line at Medford/Tufts, and having a bus waiting for you on Boston Avenue to continue your journey to West Medford, the commuter rail and beyond. In fact, there is an advocacy effort for just such a bus, seeking to transform the 80 bus into a frequent bus line from Medford/Tufts to Arlington Heights.
Instead of waiting for a generation or two to create a westward link, there are some easy and relatively inexpensive steps to better buses to West Medford and Arlington. First, move the bus stop! Right now, the bus stop is west of the Dowling Garage, a three minute walk from the station entrance. A lot can happen in three minutes, like the bus you want passing you by.
Boston Avenue isn’t one of the notoriously congested routes in the region, but traffic can slow down the bus at rush hour. A couple of peak hour bus lanes at the most troublesome stretches, combined with bus priority at traffic signals, would speed up the flow of the bus.
Frequent service on this relatively short (4.3 mile) proposed route would require six or seven buses during rush hour. The goal is to match the frequency of buses to Green Line trains, so riders leaving the train can make a quick transfer and continue on their way with a minimal delay. None of these things are hard, or terribly expensive. The bus stop could be moved in an afternoon for a relatively low cost. The new bus schedule could be adopted in the next cycle of schedule revisions. The result would open West Medford, Arlington Center and Arlington Heights to easy access for Tufts students. Not only would riders have better accessibility to the West Medford commuter rail, but it would also be a quick and easy ride to the many restaurants and the Regent Theater in Arlington Center. It would also provide a quick, easy and car-free route for graduate students and Tufts employees to commute to campus from Arlington.
I share your dream of an extended Green Line, but if you want a practical option that could be in place for next fall semester, let’s get the buses rolling from Medford/Tufts to Arlington.
