Ashmont–Mattapan High-Speed Line

Streetcar #3262, which was wrecked in December 2017

On March 20, 1979, three trolleys collided between Central Avenue and Valley Road stations. The first two trolleys had stopped to avoid a police car, which had become stuck on the tracks while the officer was investigating teenagers drinking near the line. A third trolley was unable to stop in time while approaching around a blind curve; it slammed into the first two trolleys, causing injuries, but no deaths.[14]

Using funding from the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act of 2009, the MBTA conducted a pilot test of technology similar to a collision avoidance system in an automobile, using radar and increasingly fast beeping to warn train operators of obstacles ahead. Like positive train control, it would stop the train if the driver did not take action to avoid an impending collision.[15] If successful, the system would be considered for deployment on the Green Line, where multiple collisions had occurred in recent years.

On November 26, 2014, an out-of-service streetcar collided with an in-service streetcar near Cedar Grove. Seven people were injured.[16]

On December 29, 2017, a collision between two in-service streetcars caused 17 injuries.[17] The accident, caused by operator error, reduced the line to five operable streetcars.[18]

PCC streetcar 3260 in the older green paint scheme at Ashmont in 1999

The rolling stock consists of rebuilt PCC streetcars, which were formerly part of a fleet shared with the Green Line. The historic rolling stock is retained largely because the line, built for 1920s streetcars, would have to be substantially rebuilt to accommodate the heavier modern cars used on the Green Line.[19] In order to clear the line of snow, the MBTA maintains a jet engine-powered snowblower, officially the Portec RMC Hurricane Jet Snow Blower, model RP-3, dubbed "Snowzilla". Snowzilla weighs 26,000 pounds (12,000 kg), measures 8 by 12 by 27 feet, and is powered by a Westinghouse J34 turbojet engine. It uses approximately 500 US gallons (1,900 l; 420 imp gal) of jet fuel per line clearing run. Other T lines simply run regular trains to clear the tracks of snow, but the older cars on this line would short out if used for that purpose.[20]

The current set of PCC cars are "Wartime" PCCs, built by Pullman-Standard in 1945–46. They have been in continuous revenue service in Boston since their construction, although PCC cars were not assigned to the Mattapan Line until 1955.[19] The current fleet was rebuilt as part of a systemwide PCC rebuild program in 1978–83, and again in 1999-2005.[21] During the latter rebuild, the cars were repainted from their former Green Line paint scheme to a brighter orange and cream design, similar to their original coloring.[19] The cars also carry a unique geographic MBTA logo, reminiscent of the old Metropolitan Transit Authority map logo found on the cars between 1948 and 1955.[22]

On several occasions, the MBTA has proposed to replace the PCC streetcars either with newer trolleys or with buses, and has met with substantial community opposition on each occasion. The FY2017-FY2021 Capital Investment Plan, approved by the MassDOT board in June 2016, allocated $9 million to the line including $3.7 million for maintaining the PCC cars. The plan also allocates $5 million for "PCC Car Replacement-Alternative Service" which will be used for future funding should an alternate form of transportation be decided upon.[23] In 2017, MBTA began a $7.9 million project to overhaul the trolleys and update the propulsion systems, but further problems such as fluctuations in power damaged the four operating trains in early 2018.[24][25] On February 5, 2018, it was reported that eight more trolleys were going to re-enter service in 2019, the fixes will prolong the lifespan of the trains by another 7 to 8 years.[26] The MBTA also announced that it is studying alternatives again to running trolleys.[26] Alternatives that are being considered are further repairs of the existing PCC cars, procurement of new replicas of historic cars, and turning the line into a busway.[27] Local politicians and citizens who live along the line have voiced their concerns over the potential conversion of the line into a busway and prefer that the route be maintained as using rail technology. As of January 2019, eventual conversion for use of new light rail vehicles (or Type 9 LRVs transferred from the Green Line) was reported to be the most viable option.[28]

Geographic map of the line

The line begins and ends within the city of Boston, but most of the southern half of its route is in the northern part of the neighboring town of Milton. It follows the right-of-way of two former Old Colony Railroad branches which had commuter rail service until the 1920s. Much of the route parallels the Neponset River, crossing it twice. The right-of-way is owned by the MBTA and has only two at-grade crossings on its 2.6-mile (4.2 km) route.[1] Between Cedar Grove and Butler stations, the line runs through the center of the Cedar Grove Cemetery.

Station listing

Location	Station	Opened	Notes and connections
Dorchester, Boston	Ashmont	August 26, 1929	MBTA subway: Red Line MBTA bus: 18, 21, 22, 23, 27, 191, 215, 217, 240 BAT: 12
	Cedar Grove
Milton	Butler	October 7, 1931
	Milton	August 26, 1929	MBTA bus: 217
	Central Avenue	December 21, 1929	MBTA bus: 240 BAT: 12
	Valley Road
	Capen Street	September 1930
Mattapan, Boston	Mattapan	December 21, 1929	MBTA bus: 24, 27, 28, 29, 30, 31, 33, 191, 245, 716

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ashmont–Mattapan High Speed Line.

• MBTA - Mattapan Trolley