MBTA could cut all weekend service to suburbs, including R.I., for a year

THE MBTA commuter rail reported more mechanical failures in 2016 than any other system in the U.S. / PBN FILE PHOTO / VICTORIA AROCHO
THE MBTA commuter rail reported more mechanical failures in 2016 than any other system in the U.S. / PBN FILE PHOTO / VICTORIA AROCHO

PROVIDENCE – Weekend commuter rail service to Providence Station could be eliminated for one year, along with all suburban Boston routes, as part of a package of budget cuts under review by the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority.

The Providence line is among the most heavily traveled on Saturdays, according to an MBTA ridership summary, and is among the most active of commuter lines on weekends. But the trains to Rhode Island still require a public subsidy, and the MBTA advisory board has recommended suspending the service beginning in July.

Altogether, ending weekend commuter rail service across the system will save the transit authority $10 million in fiscal 2018, about a quarter of the reduction needed to balance its budget, according to an MBTA overview.

The $41.7 million in cuts would also include internal cost controls, and cuts in premium trips requested by disabled riders, which are not required to be provided by law, the preliminary budget explains.

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Tentatively endorsed by the advisory board on Monday, the budget will remain a proposal for the next month. A final vote is expected in mid-April, according to MBTA spokesman Joe Pesaturo.

The cuts, if enacted, will affect thousands of travelers between Boston and Providence each weekend. More than 1,500 riders traveled on the Providence line inbound on Saturdays, and another 1,000 made the trip on Sundays, according to ridership statistics from May provided by the MBTA.

The Providence line, which includes stops in Attleboro, Mansfield, Route 12 and Canton, accounts for 23 percent of the commuter rail network’s traffic on Sundays, and 19 percent on Saturdays, the largest single percentage for a given line.

The MBTA is trying to eliminate a structural deficit and improve operations. Its preliminary fiscal 2018 budget of $1.95 billion includes $451 million in debt payments and $1.5 billion in operating expenses.

If it can erase the structural deficit, the MBTA projects it will have annual growth in revenue of 1.8 percent by fiscal 2019.

A spokesman for the R.I. Department of Transportation on Monday said he did not have an immediate response to the proposal.

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