New Silver Line service to South Station opens

Officials took a ceremonial inaugural ride on the Silver Line’s newest route from Dudley Station to South Station Tuesday afternoon.’

Transportation Secretary James Aloisi, Mayor Thomas Menino, acting Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority General Manager William Mitchell and other local officials boarded the Silver Line and arrived at the newly built Silver Line Station for a ribbon cutting ceremony, MBTA spokesman Joe Pesaturo said in a press release.’

‘The project is based on a long-standing community desire to have a direct connection between Dudley and South Station for the residents of neighborhoods along the bus route,’ EOT spokesman Colin Durrant said in an email.’

The new Silver Line Direct Connect Service includes SL4, which connects Dudley Station with South Station, and SL5, the existing service between Dudley Station and Downtown Crossing station, according to the Massachusetts Executive Office of Transportation. A new street-level terminal at South Station connects to the Silver Line Waterfront serving Seaport District and Logan Airport.’

According to the EOT, the new route will serve all existing Silver Line Washington Street stops except for Temple Place and Boylston.

The project, originally announced on May 4 by Gov. Deval Patrick, Aloisi and Menino, is funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act, Durrant said.’

‘Secretary Aloisi pursued the project because we had the opportunity to do something quickly that will make an impact within a year using ARRA stimulus funds,’ he said.

Massachusetts received $310 million to invest in transit across the state, Durrant said.’

‘The MBTA is using stimulus dollars to improve bicycle access and facilities, to improve bus routes, to improve reliability and invest in commuter rail, and to improve stations,’ he said.