Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority's Request for Approval To Begin Field Testing on Its Positive Train Control Network

A Notice by the Federal Railroad Administration on 04/26/2023

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MBTA finalizing work on long-delayed train control system

By Christian M. Wade | Statehouse Reporter Feb 23, 2023



Commuters board a train heading towards Boston at the Haverhill MBTA train station Thursday morning. Technology that is used to prevent train accidents will be installed along the Haverhill commuter rail line beginning next month. 2/23/23
TIM JEAN/Staff photo

BOSTON — Technology that is used to prevent train accidents, already several years behind schedule, won’t be fully up and running on the MBTA’s commuter rail system for at least another year, state transportation officials say.

The T is under a federal mandate to install the Automatic Train Control system on all of its commuter rail lines by a 2024 deadline. The technology uses antennae on locomotives, radio towers and track sensors to monitor train speeds and locations and to prevent collisions.

MBTA officials said installation of the rail safety system is about 72% complete and they expect to finish the project by the federal deadline in 2024. ... So far, the ATC system has been installed on the Newburyport/Rockport, Lowell and South Side commuter rail lines, as well as much of the Fitchburg line, according to the transit agency.

The final work on the ATC system on the Haverhill commuter rail line gets underway next month, with the T planning to operate shuttle buses between the Haverhill and Reading T stations from March 4-12 during the work.

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