About That Silver Line Connector

The red on the lefthand side is bus lane. Photo taken on Essex Street, Chinatown.

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So, we're feeling a little sheepish about the fact that we made fun of the MBTA's decision to include the nonexistent Silver Line Connector on its new maps. It turns out that the T is about a month away from debuting the new service.

In our defense, the T hasn't issued any press releases about the Silver Line Connector since May, and everything on its and the Massachusetts Executive Office of Transportation's (EOT) websites say only that the Connector was slated to open in "Fall, 2009." Can you blame us for being pessimistic about that?

One thing we said was patently false. "[N]othing has been built yet, and the BRT is not expected to go into operation until 2012." Actually, as you can see from the photo gallery above, lots of stuff has been built, if you count spraypainting a road as building something. The Connector's dedicated bus lanes on Essex Street are almost finished.

The project is being funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009 (ARRA), Obama's stimulus bill, which might account for the speed with which it's going up. When service begins, Silver Line buses traveling down Washington Street will go to either Downtown Crossing or South Station. The project promises no reductions in service to Downtown Crossing, only additional service to South Station. No word on how many Silver Line buses will arrive at the same time at any given stop.

Documents related to the project, including a friendly PowerPoint presentation, can be found here. Also in the works are the 28X BRT line and fancy new bus shelters for the 28X and the Silver Line.

And the "Little Dig"? It's not dead yet. MBTA spokesman Colin Durrant said simply, "The state can't afford that project at this time."