T Officials: Cost of Green Line project jumps by up to $1B

Complicating things even more, hundreds of millions of dollars have already been invested, and federal officials have already promised almost a billion dollars to the 2.3 billion dollar project. One way around that may be more modest stations (this is the Green Line after all).

Meanwhile, below is a YouTube that MassDOT posted in March, showing a virtual run of the extension beginning at the Lechmere station. The options the MBTA fiscal control board was expected to see include re-procuring the upcoming phase of the project, with the hopes of finding a better estimate.

Another wrinkle in the Commonwealth’s willingness to fund the project is where the state’s side of the money will come from: Special Obligation Transit Bonds, the same funding source being used to buy much needed new Red and Orange Line cars for the subway.

According to MBTA Interim General Manager Frank DePaola, the project could end up over $1 million over budget.

The costs of adding new stations soared in part because engineers found unexpected geological conditions and polluted soil, officials told the SNews Service.

“Those double pane windows, those seals have failed”, DePaola said. “We were stunned, obviously”.

“CLF is disappointed to hear about the increased cost estimate”.

The Conservation Law Foundation, the advocacy group where Pollack worked years ago that sued the state to move the project forward, supported transportation officials’ plan to deliberate and gather feedback before deciding on what to do next.

The project to extend the MBTA’s Green Line into Somerville and Medford is in deep trouble, the transit agency revealed Monday. Alternatively, the state could restart the procurement – eliminating the possibility of White Skanska Kiewit from participating.

Pollack said dealing with the ballooning cost could require legislation and involvement by the Massachusetts Department of Transportation board of directors as well as the control board.

At this point, there’s no time table for what the state will do next, Pollack says.