July Transit Advisory Committee
July TAC meeting cancelled

The TAC and City staff have cancelled the July TAC meeting scheduled for July 3. We look forward to seeing you at the TAC meetings in August and September.
Schedule of upcoming TAC meetings

Transit Advisory Committee meetings are open to the public. We welcome comments from the public during two public comment periods at the beginning and end of every TAC meeting.

August 7, 2019 at 5:30 PM
September 4, 2019 at 5:30 PM
October 2, 2019 at 5:30 PM
Transit service updates
New! - Reduced service on the Red Line until Labor Day

As a result of a Red Line derailment in early June, the MBTA is running fewer trains per hour than typical. On June 21st, the MBTA stated that they are currently operating about 10 trains every hour, about a train every 6 minutes in Cambridge. Prior to the derailment, the MBTA ran 14 Red Line trains per hour, about a train every 4 to 5 minutes in Cambridge.

The MBTA also stated that this level of service will likely continue through Labor Day, September 2, and that riders should plan for an additional 20 minutes to their commutes on the Red Line because of extra crowding during rush hour and slower travel.
Reminder! - MBTA subway, express bus, commuter rail fares increase July 1

The MBTA will be increasing fares on Monday July 1 to ride on the:
  • Rapid transit/subway
  • Commuter rail
  • Express buses
  • Ferries
  • The RIDE para-transit

At the same time, the MBTA will not change fares for:
  • one-way local bus trips
  • local bus monthly passes
  • all trips and passes with Senior CharlieCard
  • all trips and passes with Transportation Access Pass
  • all trips and passes with Youth Pass
  • all trips and passes with Student Pass

The MBTA has posted more information on the fare increase on their website. Click the button below to learn more.
Harvard busway reconstruction - stop locations shifted & busway closures

As of June 23rd, the MBTA has shutdown one level of the Harvard station busway for a reconstruction project. The reconstruction will begin with the upper level of the busway followed by the lower level.

Bus riders on Routes 71, 72, 73, 74, 75, 77, 79, 86, and 96 should pay attention to changing bus stop locations throughout the project.

Routes 71 and 73
Riders on Routes 71 and 73 now board and exit passengers at temporary bus stops on Mount Auburn Street near Brattle Square. Buses do not travel into the busway or serve the Mass Ave at Waterhouse Street stop.

At the Waterhouse Street stop, passengers can board any route 72, 74, 75, 77, 78, or 96 bus to Harvard Square to the Eliot St stop then walk to Mount Auburn at Story St to connect to routes 71 or 73.

Routes 72, 74, 75, 72/75, 77, 78, and 96
Riders travelling away from Harvard Square on Massachusetts and Concord Avenues now board buses on the lower level of the Harvard busway tunnel.

Riders travelling to Harvard Square now exit buses at a temporary bus stop on Brattle Street.

Route 86
Riders travelling toward Sullivan Square now board and exit buses on the lower level of the tunnel. As construction progresses, pay attention to changing bus berth locations.

Riders travelling toward Reservoir board and exit buses at street level on Massachusetts Avenue, Brattle and Eliot Streets.

Routes 1, 66, 68, 69
Riders travelling on these routes will see no changes to boarding locations; however, riders should pay attention to changes in boarding locations for trips with connections to other bus routes.
Escalator and elevator closures
The MBTA has closed the following escalator:
  • Central - Up from the Alewife platform to street level for maintenance

The MBTA has closed the following elevators:
  • Central - between the Ashmont/Braintree platform and street level - through summer 2019 for replacement
  • Harvard - between the mainl lobby and street level - through end of 2019 for replacement
  • Alewife - between the platform and main lobby - through summer 2019 for replacement
MBTA launches one-stop webpage for weekend service changes

The MBTA now has a website devoted for information on weekend service changes that result from repairs and upgrades.
Actions & events
Check out the evaluation posters and summaries from the Mount Auburn Bus Priority Pilot Project Evaluation Open House

On June 12, the City of Cambridge and Town of Watertown hosted an open house to share the latest information from the traffic and transit analysis and user perception surveys. You may visit the project website for background information in this project. Click the buttons below to see the posters and the two-page summary of the analysis.
Follow the Inner Mount Auburn Street Corridor Safety Improvements Project

On June 11, the City of Cambridge hosted a community meeting to talk about a future project for Mount Auburn Street in Harvard Square between JFK Street and Putnam Avenue. MBTA bus routes 1, MASCO shuttles, and Harvard bus shuttles provide service along this section of Mount Auburn Street. Click the button below to visit the project website for more information.
Submit ideas for Participatory Budgeting June 1 to July 31

The City of Cambridge is once again inviting residents to submit project ideas to improve Cambridge as part of its sixth Participatory Budgeting (PB) cycle. Participatory Budgeting is a democratic process in which community members directly decide how to spend part of the capital budget. Volunteer Budget Delegates will help develop the best ideas into concrete proposals to be voted on by the community in December.

For this next process, the City will set aside $1,000,000 for capital projects to improve the community. Winning projects from past PB cycles include a public toilet in Central Square, musical instruments for CRLS, a freezer van for prepared food rescue, solar panels for the Main Library roof, water bottle fill stations, and many others.

For more information, visit pb.cambridgema.gov .
Vacancies on several city commissions and boards

The City seeks members of the Cambridge community to participate in several boards and commissions. The following commissions and and boards are accepting applications:
  • Commission on Immigrant Rights and Citizenship
  • Human Rights Commission
  • Open Data Review Board
Transit news
MBTA Red Line derailment causes ongoing delays, frustration
After a derailment on the Red Line, the MBTA aims to restore full service by the end of summer. In addition, MBTA's fiscal management and control board leads a safety review panel.
Advocates, politicians call for more funding for MBTA, to suspend July 1 fare increase
Politicians and advocates continue to call for increased funding for the MBTA and given the state of the system after the Red Line derailment, for suspending the July 1 fare increase.
Dedicated bus lanes are making commutes faster
The news media are talking about the positive impacts that dedicated bus lanes and other transit priority measures have had on bus commutes in the region through the Boston BRT intiative. Many of the articles share about the benefits to bus riders from the Mount Auburn Street bus priority pilot project.

Governor, MassDOT, and MBTA outline plans to accelerate capital projects to improve the MBTA
Current projects
June meetings
Board Room, 10 Park Plaza, Boston, MA 02116

Board Room, 10 Park Plaza, Boston, MA 02116

Board Room, 10 Park Plaza, Boston, MA 02116

125 Sixth St

Manning Apartments, 1F Community Room, 237 Franklin St

Board Room, 10 Park Plaza, Boston, MA 02116

Cambridge Public Health Department, 119 Windsor St.

Board Room, 10 Park Plaza, Boston, MA 02116

Pedestrian Committee Meeting 7/25/2019, 6:00 PM
4F Conference Room, 344 Broadway