MBTA adding wind turbines at station sites

Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority has selected SPS New England to construct a 120-foot-high, 100-kilowatt wind turbine near MBTA’s Kingston, Mass., station.

SPS New England submitted the lowest bid at $334,334.50, the MBTA said Friday. The project will be located at MBTA’s layover facility near the station. SPS New England is expected to begin construction in September, and complete the project by year’s end.

The turbine is expected to supply roughly two-thirds of the power needs at Kingston Station, including power for locomotives to reduce or eliminate engine idling, and lighting at the stations’ parking lot and station platforms. .

A second wind turbine is expected to be built next year at the Bridgewater, Mass., rail station. Estimates say that the turbines will save the MBTA about $100,000 in electricity costs annually, MBTA General Manager Richard Davey said.