Orange Line Vulnerability Assessment

The MBTA selected Weston & Sampson and Arup to develop a transparent and scalable methodology to rapidly assess climate vulnerabilities within the Orange Line system and produce recommendations to increase resiliency to climate change, both physically and operationally.

We conducted climate baselining and hazard, vulnerability, and adaptive capacity assessments. Our team led the development of climate scenarios for assessing combined impacts of sea level rise/storm surge flooding and precipitation-driven flooding and created a PCSWMM 2D flood model for three locations to inform the vulnerability assessment. Recommendations included resilience strategies for both the infrastructure itself and for MBTA employees, as well as riders and dependent communities. The MBTA can use the results to compare capital planning priorities, understand Orange Line vulnerabilities relative to the other rapid transit lines, and identify areas for additional studies and consideration of adaptation strategies.