The Chelsea Street Bridge has drawn considerable frustration due to its frequent and poorly-timed closures. Now the MBTA is adding its voice to those expressing dismay about the 250-foot vertical lift bridge, which regularly rises during peak commuting hours.
During Monday’s MBTA Fiscal Management Control Board (FMCB) meeting, Kate Fichter, Assistant MassDOT Secretary for Policy Coordination, acknowledged that while the Silver Line extension to Chelsea has performed well overall, the delays caused by bridge closures at this critical juncture have undermined the service’s effectiveness.
According to Fichter, an existing notification system designed to alert Silver Line operators of upcoming bridge closures has proven inadequate. The bridge-related delays appear to be discouraging potential riders from using the new service.
“It impacts a lot of things and it’s been an issue a long time for Chelsea, East Boston and Revere,” said Fichter. “With the SL3, we had a plan in place that had a system for early warning with dispatch that we hoped would mitigate the issue. It hasn’t really turned out to work as well as we had hoped. It is a challenge to the Silver Line, the 116, the 117 and a lot of its other uses…The Silver Line usage has grown, and we believe if we can solve the delays at the bridge, ridership can grow even more.”
Working alongside MassPort and other stakeholders, Fichter explained that they are developing a proposal for a six-month pilot initiative to address the Coast Guard’s Maritime Regulations governing the bridge. These regulations give priority to maritime traffic over all other transportation modes, frequently resulting in bridge lifts during peak travel times. This creates complications for MassPort employees commuting to the airport parking facility in Chelsea, parents picking up children from Chelsea schools and day care centers, and countless other commuters and businesses affected by the disruptions.
“We are going to apply with the Coast Guard in the next couple of months to propose a pilot program to those regulations that would last six months,” she said. “At this point, we’re proposing that the bridge would not open in the a.m. peak times or the p.m. peak times for a two-hour period at each time.”
The pilot would maintain exceptions for fully loaded petroleum tankers entering Chelsea Creek or genuine emergencies. Its primary objective would be gathering data on delays experienced by the MBTA and other transportation users.
“I am cautiously optimistic about getting the pilot,” she said. “The situation is such that we have no real leverage. We can only ask.”
Fichter indicated that success with the pilot could lead the agencies to request a permanent regulation change from the Coast Guard, though she acknowledged this would face considerable opposition from maritime interests operating on Chelsea Creek.
“They see it as a maritime facility and we see it as the bottom of a road,” she said. “It’s no secret the users of the Creek and vessel operators are very opposed to this and I anticipate they will oppose the pilot program and would really oppose a permanent change. There are plenty of regulations that have changed across the country, but it’s a tough fight…My hope is there is a compromise position where everyone gives a little and we all get some relief.”
Community input will be gathered through public meetings scheduled for early in the new year, Fichter noted, urging residents to attend and share their concerns about the current bridge situation. Broader public participation would strengthen the case for implementing the pilot program.
An approved pilot program could commence in June 2019, according to Fichter.
Chelsea Silver Line extension seeing major growth in weekday ridership
According to reports this week from MBTA officials, the new Chelsea Silver Line service has experienced steady ridership growth since launching last April.
On Monday, members of the MBTA’s Chelsea Task Force informed the Fiscal Management Control Board (FMCB) that weekday ridership has increased by approximately 2,000 passengers monthly.
When the service began, weekday ridership stood at roughly 4,100 riders monthly and has since climbed to approximately 6,200 riders monthly. Weekend ridership patterns, however, have remained relatively stable.
Saturday ridership began near 3,000, increased to nearly 4,000, and has since dropped to about 3,200 riders monthly.
Sunday ridership started at approximately 2,900, peaked at about 3,000 in August, then rose to about 3,800 riders per month.