Red Line Trains Now Hit 50 MPH From North Quincy to JFK/UMass

Red Line trains can now run at up to 50 mph between North Quincy and JFK/UMass, the MBTA announced Friday, Oct. 30, 2026. The change extends faster running on the Braintree Branch, so riders between Braintree and JFK/UMass should see quicker trips in both directions, according to the transit agency.

The newly upgraded segment links the Quincy stations with the Dorchester transfer point at JFK/UMass, where the Braintree and Ashmont branches meet before trains continue into downtown Boston.

What changed on the Red Line

In its Oct. 30 release, the MBTA said the North Quincy to JFK/UMass section “can accommodate trains traveling up to 50 MPH.” The agency had already raised speeds to 50 mph on the Braintree Branch between Braintree and North Quincy on March 14, 2025, after work done under its 2024 Track Improvement Program.

With Friday’s step, the higher limit now applies along the whole run from Braintree to JFK/UMass. The release did not give an estimate of how many minutes a typical trip will save, and it did not say when the next section of the line might be cleared for higher speeds.

Gov. Maura Healey said in the release that “Red Line trains can now reach speeds of up to 50 miles per hour between North Quincy and JFK/UMass, giving riders faster commutes and more time back in their day.” Phillip Eng, the MBTA general manager and interim state transportation secretary, said the agency is “not satisfied with simply restoring service” and wants to keep improving “on all lines and modes.”

Part of a wider push on subway speeds

The Red Line change comes less than two weeks after a similar move on the Orange Line. On Oct. 18, the MBTA said Orange Line trains could, for the first time, run at up to 55 mph between Assembly and North Station in both directions, according to an agency release. That followed an August 2025 increase to 55 mph between Oak Grove and Assembly.

The MBTA credited the Orange Line gains to track work completed in its 2023-2024 Track Improvement Program and more recent infrastructure projects. In that release, Eng said Orange Line riders are getting “76% more service every weekday compared to winter 2023.”

By the numbers: MBTA speed increases since 2025

The table below lists the speed changes the MBTA has announced in its own releases. It shows that the agency has now cleared two connected Red Line stretches for 50 mph and two connected Orange Line stretches for 55 mph within about 19 months.

Source: MBTA news releases of Oct. 18 and Oct. 30, 2026; table: The Boston Report.

The MBTA has not published segment-by-segment travel time savings alongside these announcements, so The Boston Report is not estimating minutes saved.

What riders should know this weekend

Faster Red Line running arrives as other parts of the system face weekend disruptions. The MBTA is suspending Green Line service on several branches for sign upgrades starting Saturday morning, Oct. 31, with fare-free Route 39 and Route 57 buses running alongside the closed sections, Boston 25 News reported. Normal Green Line service is set to return at the start of service Monday. Our earlier report on the Green Line shutdown on Halloween weekend and again Nov. 7-15 has the full dates.

Riders headed to Salem for Halloween should also expect crowded Newburyport/Rockport Line trains, and bikes and scooters are barred from that line for the weekend because of heavy Haunted Happenings ridership. For other recent road and transit safety changes, see our report on Massachusetts wrong-way driver detectors.

What comes next

The MBTA did not name the next Red Line segment slated for a speed increase. The Ashmont Branch and the downtown tunnel sections were not part of Friday’s announcement. Riders can track service alerts and planned work on the Red Line alerts page.

Sources

• MBTA: Red Line Reaches 50 MPH Between North Quincy and JFK/UMass (Oct. 30, 2026)
• MBTA: Orange Line Speeds Increased to 55 MPH Between Assembly Station and North Station (Oct. 18, 2026)
• MBTA: Red Line service alerts

Additional sources

• Boston 25 News: MBTA warns riders of delays ahead of partial Halloween weekend Green Line shutdown
• Destination Salem: MBTA weekend Commuter Rail service for Haunted Happenings

Featured photo: IliketrainsR211T, Wikimedia Commons, CC BY 4.0 (file photo of a Braintree-bound Red Line train at JFK/UMass, October 2025).