The MBTA is building a new, fully accessible Chelsea Commuter Rail station next to the final SL3 stop in Chelsea. When complete, the new station will connect the Newburyport/Rockport Commuter Rail Lines to the SL3. While building the new station, the MBTA is also upgrading the rail signal system and replacing the railroad crossings at Third Street, Eastern Avenue, and Everett Avenue in Chelsea, as well as Second Street in Everett. To prepare for the railroad crossing work, the MBTA’s contractor will be doing utility work at these locations in May, with the working having started on May 4. Work had been postponed in April previously.
•Traffic Impacts in May
To safely perform work at the railroad crossings, traffic will be impacted in the following locations at these scheduled* times:
*Third Street in Chelsea – Monday, May 4, through Friday, May 8, from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. each day. Traffic will be reduced to a single lane with alternating traffic in each direction.
*Eastern Avenue in Chelsea – Monday, May 11, through Friday, May 15, from 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. each day. One lane of traffic will remain open in each direction.
*If work is completed ahead of schedule at one crossing, work will immediately commence at the next scheduled crossing (Monday through Friday).
Police details will help direct traffic around all railroad crossings while construction is in progress.
The current Chelsea Commuter Rail station, on the Newburyport/Rockport Line at Arlington Street in Chelsea, is inconvenient for transfers to other modes, is not accessible to people with disabilities, and is in disrepair. The MBTA is investing $32 million to construct the new Chelsea Commuter Rail station, including full high-level platforms for boarding, canopies and benches, new sidewalks, security cameras, passenger assistance telephones, lighting, and more. Work began in August 2019 and is expected to be completed in 2021.