STV’s collaboration with the MBTA in helping to bring the Green Line Extension project closer to completion has been lauded by everyone involved in the process. — Photo courtesy of STV

STV, a leader in engineering, architectural, planning and program and construction management services joined the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) to celebrate the opening of the Green Line Extension (GLX).

Revenue service has begun on the Union Square branch, the first of two segments to be completed on this $2.3 billion design-build. STV serves as the lead designer for GLX as part of the design-build team led by Fluor Corporation/Middlesex Corporation/Herzog Contracting Corp/Balfour Beatty joint venture (GLX Constructors).

“It’s gratifying to see the impact this project will have on our communities,” said STV Project Manager Keith MacKenzie, P.E., S.E. “Designing a public transportation project like this increases vital access to the educational, medical and economic institutions that connect our communities. STV is thrilled to have designed a system that will provide real opportunities for people for generations to come.”

The GLX design-build program includes the design and construction of a vehicle maintenance facility, an administration building, three traction power substations, a viaduct with more than 50 spans, seven stations, six bridges, and a community path with a pedestrian bridge.

STV overcame multiple design challenges to deliver a sustainable and reliable new transit system and responded to the requests of residents by providing bicycle and pedestrian amenities that will connect to other communities, all within an extremely narrow corridor that cuts through the most densely populated area in New England.

The now-open Union Square Branch consists of two stations – the new elevated Lechmere Station and Union Square in Somerville – and is part of the larger 4.7-mile system that will ultimately provide the Massachusetts communities of Cambridge, Somerville and Medford with a one-seat ride to downtown Boston. The Medford Branch is scheduled to open later this year.

The opening of this project marks a major milestone in STV’s long history of delivering significant megaprojects in Boston, including the Greenbush Line Rail Restoration and the Silver Line Courthouse Station and Tunnel. The firm has worked on such iconic projects as the Longfellow Bridge Rehabilitation Design-Build, serving as lead designer, and the massive Central Artery/Tunnel (CA/T) or “Big Dig” project, where STV was responsible in joint venture for the civil, structural, mechanical, electrical, geotechnical and utilities engineering, as well as the management of all disciplines, for the $450 million Section D011A design-build.

The MBTA anticipates a number of benefits for GLX, including the reduction of 26,000 regional daily vehicle miles travelled, thereby improving air quality and reducing automobile congestion in the commonwealth. Daily ridership at the seven new GLX stations is expected to hit 45,000 by 2030.

STV’s responsiveness has earned it the reputation as a leader in transportation infrastructure planning, design and construction management.