Orange Line: Planning Ahead

Four days into the Orange Line's 10-day shutdown, here's where things stand. Service between Oak Grove and Back Bay is suspended through August 30 while crews replace track at Chinatown and upgrade signals at Wellington and North Station. That takes out both of Malden's Orange Line stations — Oak Grove and Malden Center — for the full ten days.

Day one: the bus to Stoneham

Thursday's shuttles didn't all go smoothly. WCVB reported that one shuttle bus bound for North Station instead ended up in Stoneham, with a rider describing the moment the bus turned the wrong way onto I-93: "We were suddenly going north on I-93. And he's asking us 'Am I going the right way?' No, no, everyone is saying no ... And then all of a sudden we're directing him. He's asking us where we're going and we're saying North Station. He's like, 'What's the address?' I'm like North Station. That's it."

We covered that story, with photos from both Malden stations, in Taking the Orange Line to Stoneham.

The real numbers

Per the MBTA's own current guidance, a rider traveling from Oak Grove to Downtown Crossing should budget at least an additional 70 minutes on top of their regular commute. That's the MBTA's own estimate, not ours — and it's before accounting for wrong turns.

There's a free alternative worth knowing about: the MBTA is offering fare-free service on the Haverhill Commuter Rail Line between Oak Grove, Malden Center, and North Station for the duration of the shutdown. Regular fares apply beyond Oak Grove.

The source

MBTA Alerts page, as of Aug. 20, 2026

View PDF →

The weekend, in photos

A Vista Grande Line coach bus serving as an Orange Line shuttle, parked at a busway with waiting passengers — Charter coaches, pressed into shuttle service.

A yellow Tankee Line shuttle bus marked North Station next to a white coach bus — A North Station-bound shuttle.

Shuttle buses and waiting riders at a busway stop — Riders waiting for the next shuttle.

A coach bus in shuttle service on a city street

Close-up of a yellow bus reading YANKEE transit — Yankee Transit, one of several charter operators called in for shuttle duty.

What's still ahead

This shutdown runs through August 30. It won't be the last one this year — a second multi-day Orange Line shutdown is already scheduled for September, though that one affects the southern end of the line, not Malden's stations.

What readers are saying

The Facebook post covering Thursday's wrong-way shuttle drew 73 comments as of this writing. A selection, presented as posted — MNN has not interviewed the commenters or verified the accuracy of their claims.

"These are contracted drivers not MBTA operators btw. They usually have a pilot to guide them if they don't know."
"I'll bet the orange line ride turned some passengers red"
"And I did take the commuter rail yesterday in no issues and caught an express bus home from north station that only did Wellington malden center and oak grove stops which I thought was great as I think when it was shut down a few years back I had to do all the stops home."
"Thankfully I live on the 105 route so can jump on 92 or 93 when I get to Sullivan or 4 to North Station and jump on Haverhill train to Malden and avoid shuttle buses. Learned about various bus routes when I'd collect bus schedules before the apps were a thing."
"I heard on the radio this morning somebody who works for the MBTA. She was a redline inspector no shade to her, but she was defending the MBTA saying it was no MBTA driver. They basically hire out so she was defending the T. But I totally disagreed with her. It is the MBTA's fault and the driver's fault."
"My bus full of people got on an express to Oak Grove shuttle. It was only supposed to go to Wellington, Malden, Oak Grove. What does the old driver do after leaving North Station and passing Community College? He winds up going into Sullivan Station, not in the express stop, follows the road leading out of Sullivan Station and takes the route heading back into Boston where we came from. I yelled out 'Where are you going?!' He said he took a wrong turn. He didn't bother to explain this to anybody until people began to get concerned and upset."
"This is why the T management should pay the OT and have the regular Union Drivers do the route elsewhere. My dad was a T Bus driver for close to 30 years and the regular drivers would always get the shuttle services. This is why you give the work to the people who know the area."
"Get a car. And Maybe a G p s system for bus driver"
"And that's why I'll be driving next week"
"Oh geez…. My poor kid that relies on the T every single day to get to work, school, his girlfriend's place."

Continuing coverage

Read our earlier coverage: Orange Line Service Suspended and Taking the Orange Line to Stoneham.