The MBTA and Keolis plan to launch an eight-week improvement project along the Worcester Line later this week, work that will require changes to the line’s schedule and will delay evening rush hour and weekend trains. Once the improvement project begins on Saturday, Aug. 25, most of the work will take place near Back Bay Station during weekend days and between 9:30 a.m. and 3:30 p.m. on weekdays.  

More work will occur between Wellesley Hills and Wellesley Square, as well as near Grafton Station during weekend days, Keolis said. The project, which is expected to run through Oct. 20, involves replacing 38,000 feet of rail along the corridor of the Worcester Line and will require speed restrictions to maintain a safe work zone, Keolis said. Keolis said no weekday morning rush hour trains will be affected by the work, but that it “may lead to five to 10-minute delays for some trains operating on weekends and some trains operating after the morning rush hour on weekdays.”  

“MBTA and Keolis teams have been making critical infrastructure investments across the entire network over the last four years,” Keolis General Manager and CEO David Scorey said in a statement. “There is more work to do, and this initiative contributes to that progress in a way that does not impact the morning commute. However, passengers are encouraged to add five to 10 minutes into their schedules for off-peak service and evening rush hour.” 

Over the last four years, Keolis and the T have replaced 200,000 rail ties and 10 miles of rail on the Worcester Line, Keolis said. To accommodate the work, three midday weekday trains will depart 10 minutes later than their usual scheduled times: train 511 (normally departs South Station at 10:15 a.m.), train 513 (normally departs South Station at 11:55 a.m.) and train 516 (normally departs Worcester at 12:05 p.m.).