By Ana Célérier Salcedo

On Wednesday, November 16, the MBTA held a virtual meeting to discuss upcoming accessibility improvements to Davis station. The station has been operating since 1984 and provides transit connections for the MBTA Red line and the T bus routes.

Once Davis station undergoes planned accessibility improvements, the station will include new and replaced elevators, new signage, way-finding resources, and lighting enhancements, including energy-efficient lighting.

MBTA Senior project manager for the Davis station, Eitan Normand, said the improvements to the station “will significantly increase accessibility, safety and reliability. Which will hopefully result in a more positive customer experience.”

The project at Davis station is a part of the MBTA’s ongoing elevator accessibility program, which aims to ensure that all stations are fully accessible to T users and address the need for elevator replacements and renovations stretching across nine MBTA stations.

Views of the existing and proposed improvements to Davis station were presented at the meeting.

Design for the elevator program began in the fall of 2020 and is now at 75 percent completion. It is currently totaled to cost an estimated $6.6 million. The project is under the supervision of Kleinfelder Inc., an engineering, construction management, design, and professional environmental services firm.

Normand said that at the College Avenue entrance, an elevator, known as elevator one, will be stretcher compliant and allow for easier wheelchair accessibility. He added that elevator one has been designed with glass paneling for higher visibility both in and out of the elevator.

In regard to the Holland Street entrance, a new elevator will be added, currently known as elevator four.

According to the manager of stakeholder engagement at the MBTA, Katy Zazzera, the elevator project is still in design and is expected to be completed in the summer of 2023. Zazzera added that the project is working on identifying construction funding.

Members of the public interested in receiving updates about the project were urged to visit the program website, www.mbta.com/ElevatorProgram, or contact the program via email at ElevatorProgram@mbta.com.