MBTA aims to resume service near Government Center garage Monday

The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority’s Orange Line and Green Line subway services near the Government Center garage could resume Monday morning if a structural issue within the garage is deemed safe. The Orange Line is suspended between North Station and Back Bay, and Green Line service has been replaced by shuttle buses between Government Center and Lechmere. When the service suspension was announced on Thursday, the MBTA released the following statement: “HYM Construction, the contractor demolishing the private Government Center Garage, advised the MBTA that the garage’s support columns that pass through MBTA tunnels near Haymarket station are severely deteriorated, creating an unsafe environment in the tunnel area for Green Line and Orange Line trains to operate through,” the MBTA said in a news release.

“The condition of these columns requires the suspension of Green Line and Orange Line rail service effective immediately in the tunnels beneath Haymarket station,” the statement said. The MBTA announced Saturday night that it is working toward resuming regular Orange and Green line services as soon as is safely possible, and that the agency is aiming to resume regular service Monday morning — if the garage is deemed safe by internal and third-party engineers and safety experts. “The MBTA continues to provide assistance to the developer of the private Government Center Garage in the recovery effort, accommodating all efforts for the developer to have access to the support columns and to reinforce the structures.

Repair work continues to be underway and the MBTA will continue to support HYM’s contractors by delivering workers and materials to the site,” the transit authority said in a statement. “Structural engineers and safety experts are also on scene monitoring the site, performing intensive examinations and assessments of the infrastructure above and below the surface at Haymarket. These teams are and will be ready to assess their work to ensure the safety of all infrastructure before allowing MBTA service to resume.

” Boston police said Thursday that Congress Street under the Government Center garage, Purchase Street, Sudbury Street and New Chardon Street have been temporarily closed. Police have not provided an update as to whether those roadways have reopened. On Friday, a fire that broke out in a high-rise under construction at 1 Congress St.

near the Government Center garage led to the closure of the Interstate 93 north- and southbound ramps to Government Center. Those I-93 ramps were reopened within a matter of hours. HYM Investment Group said prior to the MBTA’s statement that the issue was not related to demolition work at the parking garage.

“A team of engineers conducted a survey of the MBTA tunnels underneath the Government Center Garage,” a statement from HYM Investment Group said. “A subsurface column in proximity to the Green and Orange Lines was identified as compromised from years of water damage. ” .

@bostonpolice have just shut down Merrimack Street under the garage to vehicle traffic as well. Busses diverting train passengers are now making additional diversions. What a mess #wcvb https://t.

co/UBDvRyAoDj pic. twitter. com/ufomv83Ajc The MBTA blasted HYM in their news release, blaming them for the service disruption.

“This service disruption as a result of HYM’s project is unacceptable and the MBTA will seek to hold HYM Construction accountable for all costs associated with this event,” MBTA General Manager Steve Poftak said in a news release. “Riders’ safety is our top priority and unfortunately, as a result of this private party’s project, we must divert trains until the tunnels can be inspected and cleared by independent experts. ” The MBTA said it will not resume rail service through this area until a team of structural engineers examine and assess infrastructure above and below the surface, make emergency repairs and confirm that subway service can safely resume.

On March 26, a construction worker was killed during a partial collapse of the Government Center parking garage in the Haymarket area of the city . According to the Boston Fire Department, the victim, 51-year-old Peter Monsini of South Easton , was doing demolition work inside the parking garage in a construction vehicle when the floor buckled underneath the vehicle. The partial collapse led to a two-week suspension of MBTA Green Line subway service to allow structural engineers to comprehensively inspect the Green Line tunnel.

“The city of Boston took the precautionary measure to close streets surrounding the Government Center Garage while the owner of the garage and the MBTA conduct further structural analysis of a deteriorated support column found today under the garage,” the city of Boston said in a news release. The MBTA encouraged commuters directly impacted by the tunnel closures to consider working from home if possible. “The city of Boston will continue to work closely with the garage owner, the MBTA, and construction crews to determine next steps to ensure the safety of residents, commuters and workers in the area,” the news release said.

.