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Gov. Charlie Baker said the shutdown will begin on Aug. 19 and resume on September 19. This is the first time the MBTA has shut down an entire line, Baker said.
The MBTA board unanimously voted to spend as much as $37 million to hire A Yankee Line, a shuttle bus company, to ferry stranded Orange Line passengers. The buses will be free to ride. The company has worked with the transportation agency to move passengers during previous repairs.
More than 100,000 people ride the Orange Line during the work week, according to MBTA data. Only the Red Line sees more foot traffic. It's unclear how the buses will be able to accommodate that many people during peak travel times.
One Boston resident told the board during Wednesday's meeting that repairs are needed but called the shutdown "unacceptable."
"People are going to lose their jobs," he said. "Businesses aren't going to have full staffs to run their businesses. People aren't going to be able to get to medical appointments. People aren't going to be able to see friends and family.
The closure comes at a fraught time for The T. Orange Line passengers last month had to jump out of the cars after one of them caught fire. One person leaped into the Mystic River to escape the flames. Thankfully no one was injured. That wasn't the case for Robinson Lalin, the 39-year-old who was dragged to his death when his arm got caught in the doors of the Red Line in April.
The Federal Transportation Administration last month ordered an immediate stand down of the MBTA commuter line following a third runaway train incident.
Boston Mayor Michelle Wu told WBUR it was time to "rip the band-aid off" and shut down large sections of the commuter rail system to make safety improvements.
“If we need to have a larger scale shutdown … rather than just trying to do a little bit of track here or there every weekend or late at night, actually doing it all in one sweep, getting it done, would then free up resources at the T to focus on improving other parts," she said. “... I know that’s painful because it would be tremendously disruptive, but we are at that point where prolonging this will make it worse and continue to bring about safety issues."
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