MBTA Begins Bus Lane Work for NEW Route 104 Bus Service through Everett and Chelsea

Improvements will pave the way for more frequent bus service making new connections on 2nd Street in Everett Square and Chelsea, launching on December 15

BOSTON – The MBTA, City of Everett, and the City of Chelsea announced this week that work has begun to create new dedicated bidirectional bus lanes to prepare for the new Frequent Route 104 bus service as part of Bus Network Redesign Phase 1. This is part of the MBTA’s overall Transit Priority Strategy.

Approximately one mile of bus lanes are being added to 2nd Street in Everett and Chelsea to support the new route of Frequent Bus Route 104 and to help ensure the service remains fast and reliable. The lane will stretch between Spruce Street in Chelsea to Revere Beach Parkway in Everett in the westbound direction, and there will be an eastbound segment in Chelsea from the Everett City line at Market Steet ending just shy of Spruce Street.

Installation of the bus lanes will be performed overnight beginning Sunday, October 20, and is anticipated to last approximately three weeks (weather permitting). Existing lanes will remain for traffic in each direction. No parking spaces will be removed for the bus lanes.

The December 15 launch of new Frequent Route bus service will include changes to six bus routes: 86, 104, 109, 110, 116, and 117, serving the communities of Chelsea, Everett, Revere, Malden, East Boston, Somerville, Cambridge, Allston, and Brighton. Service on these routes will increase by 60% overall compared to today’s service.

“The 2nd Street Bus Lane being installed in Everett and Chelsea this week means riders on our new 104 bus route can expect improved travel times that dedicated lanes offer after the 104 starts operating on December 15,” said MBTA General Manager and CEO Phillip Eng. “As a Frequent Bus Route, the 104 will operate every 15 minutes or better all day long, creating new connections for our Everett Square riders to Chelsea and the Airport. I want to thank the MBTA Transit Priority Group for their diligent work on improving our network as we deploy the first phase of Bus Network Redesign. I also want to thank Everett Mayor DeMaria and Chelsea City Manager Fidel Maltez for being such excellent partners in prioritizing the installation of bus lanes in their community – it’s through collaborations like these with our City partners that we’re able to make these kinds of quick and cost-effective improvements for bus riders.”

“Everett has long been a leader in transit innovation, including the addition of bus lanes to offer residents faster, more frequent, and reliable commutes,” said Everett Mayor Carlo DeMaria. “We’re excited to partner with the MBTA to bring transit priority to 2nd Street, improving accessibility for Everett residents commuting to East Boston and Logan Airport. This initiative will not only ease commutes but also support the redevelopment of Everett’s industrial district, reducing traffic as the area transforms into a vibrant residential and commercial hub.”

Route 104 will become a Frequent Bus Route, with service every 15 minutes or better all day, every day during operating hours 5 AM to 1 AM (Sundays may start as late as 6 AM). The revised route will create a new connection from Malden and Everett to Chelsea and East Boston by redirecting the current route south of Everett Square to serve Mystic Mall Plaza, Bellingham Square and Airport Station. This will also double the existing service on Route 104. The new 104 route will help people get to and from key employment and shopping areas, including Chelsea’s Market Basket and Logan Airport. It will offer new connections to the Orange and Blue lines. This important new east-west connection targets long-standing inequities in transportation access, food access, and job access in historically marginalized communities north of the Mystic River. The new Frequent Bus Route 109 will replace service between Everett Square and Sullivan Square, also with service running every 15 minutes or better all day during MBTA service hours.

The MBTA worked closely with City officials and the Chelsea and Everett communities to design and implement bus lanes to protect this new bus service from traffic. Outreach took place with businesses along 2nd and Spruce Streets and included health and human services entities, education, consumer service and retail, restaurants and cafes, and community and nonprofit groups. An Open House was held adjacent to the corridor in partnership with the community nonprofit GreenRoots to gather community feedback. A survey of bus riders conducted at stops in Everett and Chelsea showed that most respondents believe bus-only lanes speed up their typical trips. Additionally, many indicated they would be more likely to use the bus if it were faster and more reliable, which is a holistic goal of the Bus Network Redesign.

For more information on how bus service will change, visit mbta.com/BNRPhase1. An overview of the changes coming in December and detailed information about service changes on Routes 86, 104, 109, 110, 116, and 117 is available. New bus schedules and timetables will be available later this fall, providing more details on service changes. The page will be regularly updated with new information as the projects roll out.

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