At the Charlie Card Challenge, runners ask: can you beat the Green Line?

At the Charlie Card Challenge, runners ask: can you beat the Green Line? At the Charlie Card Challenge, runners ask: can you beat the Green Line? Samantha Mayer, news correspondent October 12, 2026 A photo graphic featuring runners chasing the MBTA Green Line during the Charlie Card Challenge. Bostonians and running enthusiasts alike ran six miles in attempt outrun the Green Line train to Park Street. Photos by Margot Murphy, Devyn Rudnick. Photo courtesy Wikimedia Commons. Graphic by Margot Murphy. Ever thought the Green Line was too slow? Or that, maybe, you could run faster than it?  This year, the Charlie Card Challenge, an annual competition for individuals to race six miles against the Green Line, attracted hundreds of runners to test those exact questions. Approximately 700 runners swarmed the Boston College MBTA, or T, stop Sept. 18, racing the train six miles to the Park Street stop. First organized in 2023 by running group Run Dirty Water, the race occurs in public while cars are driving and people are walking. Its creators, Tom Aye and his friends, brainstormed the idea after hearing about — and sometimes dealing with — frustration with the Green Line’s sluggish speed. “I don’t even take the Green Line, so I can’t lament too hard, but I know that it is something that people are frustrated by, so we just thought it was kind of a fun, tongue-in-cheek way to get people active and sort of celebrate our transit system,” Aye said. “It just started sort of a goofy idea to see if we could outrun the T.” Every time the Green Line departs, a group of runners leaves with it. Participants counted these “waves” by the train the group was racing. During the six miles when the Green Line goes underground at Blandford Street, the participants, still sprinting above ground, have to guess where the train is as they run.  “I think [running against the underground train] is the best part.” Mikaela Drake, a Boston local who ran the event last year, said while riding the “second-wave” train. “It’s thrilling when you can’t see the train anymore, and then you’re just kind of freaked. You don’t know what’s gonna happen.” A race marshal boards each train as it departs to keep track of the time as runners compete against the Green Line. Once the marshal steps off the train, the race for that wave of runners is officially over.  Last year, 177 runners beat the train. The fastest runner last year in the women’s category, Christinia Crow, finished at 37 minutes, roughly a six-minute mile time. The fastest man, Mike Durkin, finished in approximately 30.5 minutes, which is almost a five-minute mile.  But residents said the race speaks to a commonly-held frustration about the Green Line’s pace. Antonia DiZoglio, a third-year nursing major at Boston College, said that she’s been walking instead of taking the Green Line because she worries it will make her late.  “I’ve actually been walking to one of my clinicals instead of taking the Green Line because it’s actually faster,” Dizoglio said. Boston’s Green Line has been around since 1897and is the oldest subway tunnel in North America. Even “We have to use public transportation a lot because we both don’t have our cars here. So, we do have to rely on the Green Line, and I’ve had issues before, like with the Green Line being down, and like I’ve been late to student teaching, so it’s not ideal,” said Grace Laliverte, a third-year elementary education major at Boston College.  After its development in 2011, the Bluebike has become one of these alternatives and something Grace Theobald, a fifth-year computer science and behavioral neuroscience combined major at Northeastern, recommends doing.  “It’s really slow,” Theobald said of the Green Line, “And, hot tip, the fastest way to get anywhere in Boston is to Bluebike.” Participants bonded over more than running as many dressed up in costumes for the race.  “Last year we ran in suits,” said Cambridge resident Charley Yang as he donned a big flamingo pool floatie and snorkeling goggles. “This year I felt like, you know, they started it a little later in the summer this year and we never really got to swim this year. We didn’t go to any pools, so we thought it’d be one last hurrah for the summer.” Alex Kim said while adorning a unicorn floatie that toppled over his head, “We beat the Green Line the first time, so we decided we’re just going to do it kind of creatively from there on, hence the outfits.” As the day turned into night, runners gathered and took photos by the Park Street station while music blasted.  “I think it’s a great opportunity for the city of Boston, especially the younger crowd, but also the older people too, to get together and join as one,” Yang said. “I think it’s an awesome experience.” 0 Like This Story Share on Facebook Share on X Email this Story Print this Story Tags: community MBTA transit More to Discover More in City Boston rallies against sexual violence in solidarity with Cornell’s Jane Doe One weekend, one plaza: How a Boston festival unites people with pizza ‘This isn’t a taboo thing anymore’: Boston Freedom Rally advocates to protect recreational weed ‘HAGS’: Boston college students reflected on a ‘great summer’ in the city Students swarm the streets for Boston’s annual moving day Jazz Urbane Cafe brings culture, rhythm to heart of Roxbury More in Neighborhoods Hundreds gather on Boylston for 30th annual Boston Greek Parade Asian Community Fund announces its first-ever Narrative Change Grant awardees How Oakleaf Cakes Bake Shop brews community — and defies corporate takeovers ‘They just lit up’: How Matter Neuroscience is fighting loneliness with payphones Why JustBook-Ish is more than just a bookstore Boston promised a family-friendly St. Patrick’s Day. 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