MBTA to make Brookline’s Green Line C Branch fully accessible, consolidate two stops and close Kent Street

The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority on Tuesday outlined a plan to make every Green Line C Branch station in Brookline accessible, consolidating the Fairbanks and Brandon Hall stops and removing the Kent Street platforms.

"Through this project, we'll be updating those to make every single station in Brookline accessible on C Branch," said Gwendolyn Levey, Deputy Chief of Integrated Transit Programs, who presented the design and construction plan. Levey said the work responds to narrow, uneven platforms, limited signage and poor lighting that currently hinder riders with mobility devices.

The MBTA's design raises platforms about 8 inches above the rail so trains can deploy bridge plates for roll-on access and widens platforms to provide the roughly 60 inches of turning room needed for mobility devices, Levey said. The project will add benches, upgraded lighting, customer-assistance boxes and real-time arrival signage in the interim; full level boarding and larger overhead canopies are planned for a later phase when new trains are in service.

Under the plan, Fairbanks and Brandon Hall—now so close that their full-length platforms would nearly touch—will be consolidated into a single, relocated platform west of the current Braintree Hall location, with three accessible track crossings and two new ramps connecting Beacon Street. Kent Street will be removed and the former platform area replanted and improved, Levey said.

Levey said the changes should modestly speed service: "travel times will be reduced 3% in the morning, 7% in the evening." For construction sequencing, officials said work will begin shortly after the marathon at the end of April; the MBTA expects stations to be open for use by the end of the year, with substantial and final completion targeted next spring, though the schedule is tentative.

To limit passenger disruption, crews will use three approaches: full diversions (temporary shutdowns with shuttle buses), station bypasses (trains pass stations while work continues) and temporary platforms that provide improved interim access until permanent platforms are finished, Levey said. There may be one or two shutdowns longer than a weekend, depending on overlapping Green Line work, staff added.

Residents raised questions about tree preservation, safety from traffic and special amenities. Fran Pearl, a town meeting member from Precinct 8, asked whether one centrally located ramp could replace two large ramps to save trees. "Part of accessibility is equal access," Levey replied, saying ramps are required at both existing stair locations so people who currently use each side retain access; MBTA staff said they worked with the town to preserve historic stairs where possible.

Brian Kane, chair of Brookline's Transportation Board, said the design balances neighborhood access and tree protection after more than 20 public meetings and appeals. "We wanted to allow access to the two sides of the neighborhood—folks that currently use Brandon Hall and folks that currently use Fairbanks to have equal access," Kane said.

On protection from adjacent traffic, MBTA staff said most stations will include a roughly 5-foot tree lawn plus a fence and curb as additional separation. "Where we can't get the physical separation by distance we have a barrier separation," Levey said.

The MBTA emphasized coordination with Brookline’s planned bridle path and with MassDOT safety reviews; officials said the station designs do not preclude the bridle path but that the bridle path project is led by the town. Brookline staff said a road safety audit with MassDOT and other stakeholders is scheduled for May and that public design review will reconvene in September.

Officials invited public comment and held an open house after the presentation. No votes or formal actions were taken at the meeting; MBTA staff said shutdown dates and other detailed construction notices will be announced in advance.

Next steps: construction is slated to start shortly after the marathon at the end of April, the MBTA said, with more detailed shutdown schedules published by the authority several weeks before an event.