COMMUTER RAIL ADDING SERVICE AT FOREST HILLS IN ANTICIPATION OF INCREASED RIDERSHIP AFTER LABOR DAY

Commuters seeking an alternative to the Orange Line will have more options Monday through Friday peak and on the weekends at Forest Hills

BOSTON – August 30, 2022 – With an increase in Commuter Rail ridership anticipated after Labor Day, the MBTA and Keolis will provide additional service at Forest Hills Station beginning on Saturday September 3, 2022 running through the end of the Orange Line service disruption on Sunday September 18, 2022. Details on the additional Providence Line trains and Franklin Line trains that will make stops at Forest Hills are available below. An updated schedule will be available online at MBTA.com/CR on Friday September 2, 2022.

“The Commuter Rail continues to be the best option for Orange Line riders during the shutdown, and we’re grateful to be able to offer additional rail service at Forest Hills for our riders after Labor Day,” said MBTA General Manager Steve Poftak. “These kinds of service adjustments during the Orange Line shutdown are a great example of how we’re constantly analyzing ridership levels, collaborating with our partners, and making changes as needed. Thank you to our Commuter Rail partners at Keolis, and thank you to our Orange Line riders for their continued patience as we accomplish this important work over the coming weeks.”

“Supporting riders during the Orange Line service disruption by revising the commuter rail schedule to implement additional stops at Forest Hills allows us to be responsive to the increase in ridership that we have observed over the past two weeks and to the needs of the communities we serve,” said Abdellah Chajai, CEO and General Manager of Keolis.

Monday – Friday service additions:

• 9 additional Inbound trains will stop at Forest Hills Monday through Friday, bringing the total number of inbound trains that stop at Forest Hills to 37
• 13 trains (up from 8) will get you to South Station by 9am
• 5 trains between 7:00am and 8:00am
• 4 trains between 8:00am and 9:00am
• Added 9 more trains outbound, including one that now stops at Forest Hills in the 10:00pm hour (there was not one previously)

Weekend service additions:

• 4 additional trains inbound, including trains in the 1:00pm and 3:00pm hour (there were none previously)
• 7 additional trains outbound, including one more late-night train that leaves south station at 11:00 and arrives at Forest Hills at 11:14
• There is now at least one train an hour outbound from South Station that stops at Forest hills starting at 6:00am (with the exception of the 9:00pm hour, but there are two trains in the 8:00pm hour, a train that arrives at 8:14pm and one that arrives at 8:58 p.m.

This additional service at Forest Hills comes after the MBTA and Keolis announced additional capacity on Haverhill Line trains to accommodate the increase in ridership during the initial week of the Orange Line service disruption. Each train that passes through the Oak Grove and Malden Center Stations stop there.

Passengers can stay connected with Commuter Rail by calling customer service at 617-222-3200, following @MBTA_CR on Twitter or signing up for T-Alerts at mbta.com/alerts.

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