This is Boston, Massachusetts. With a metro population of 7 million, this US city is connected
by a network of commuter rail lines, which service 141 stations across eleven counties
and two states. Consisting of twelve lines and 398 miles of track, the system connects
various suburbs around Boston, with trains running to two major stations in downtown.
But how did the system grow from its original stations to the network it is today? My name’s
Zach, and this is the Evolution of the Network.
Publicly funded commuter rail service in Boston
began in January 1965, when the newly formed MBTA began subsidizing trains run by the Boston &
Maine Railroad. Departing from North Station, six line radiated to various destinations
north of downtown, with trains running to South Sudbury, West Concord, Bedford, Wilmington
and Woburn, Reading, Hamilton/Wenham and Manchester. Additionally, unsubsidized service continued
north from Wilmington to Concord and Dover New Hampshire, and north of Hamilton/Wenham
to Newburyport. In June, subsidy arrangements were reached
with more towns in Massachusetts, extending trains on four lines. West Concord trains
were extended four stops to Ayer, while Wilmington trains were extended two stations north to Lowell.
On the Manchester branch, trains on the were extended three stops to Rockport, while the
Hamilton/Wenham branch saw a one stop extension to Ipswich. A new station was also opened
on that line in September, servicing employees at the General Electric plant. In October,
a new station was opened on the Bedford line, with trains now stopping at Arlington.
The MBTA began subsidizing service on the New York, New Haven & Hartford Railroad in
April 1966, adding more lines to the system. From Boston’s South Station, two lines travelled
to various destinations south of downtown, with trains running to Needham Heights, Millis,
Dedham, and Franklin. Subsidized service was extended on the Ipswich
branch in April 1967, with a one stop extension to Newburyport. Later that month, the branches
to Millis and Dedham were closed, along with the nine stations serviced along these routes.
In June, a new branch of the Lowell/Woburn line began service, subsidizing trains at
seven stations to Haverhill. At the same time, unsubsidized service from Lowell was discontinued,
ending commuter trains into New Hampshire. A second station was opened on the Bedford
line in March 1968, with trains servicing a new stop at Lake Street.
Three years later in March 1971, a new station was opened on the Franklin Line, with service
beginning to Windsor Gardens. In August, special event service began to the newly opened Foxboro
Stadium, with trains running from South Station, Back Bay, and Providence Rhode Island. Subsidized
commuter rail service in Rhode Island began in November of that year, with a rush hour
train operated by Penn Central. The trip ran between Westerly and Providence, continuing
unsubsidized into Massachusetts. Later that month, service on the South Sudbury line ended,
with the eight stations on the line being closed. Special trains between Foxboro and
Providence also ended near the end of that year, although we were unable to confirm an
exact date. The MBTA began subsidizing service on the
Penn Central Railroad in January 1973, adding service from South Station to Framingham and
Sharon. Unsubsidized service continued beyond these stops however, with trains on the Framingham
line running to Worcester, and trains on the Sharon line continuing to Providence and Stoughton.
In June, a new station was opened on the Needham line at Forest Hill, offering an interchange
with the Orange line subway. In March 1974, two infill stations were opened
on the Ayer line, bringing service to Belmont and Waverly. On the Haverhill branch, the
station at North Andover was closed in November, as the town decided to stop subsidizing trains.
Service on the Ayer line was cut back to South Acton in March 1975, closing intermediate
stations at Littleton and West Acton. In October, unsubsidized service to Worcester ended, with
all trains on the route now ending at Framingham. Two months later in December, the Reading
line station at Malden was closed, coinciding with the opening of the adjacent Orange line
subway station. Service on the Newburyport branch was cut
back to Ipswich in April 1976, following the loss of funding from the town. Later that
month, the Haverhill branch stations at Ballardvale, Andover, and Shawsheen were also closed, followed
three months later in June by the remaining stations on the branch. In September, full
subsidies began on the Sharon line, bringing subsidized service to Providence, as well
as two stations on the Stoughton branch. That year, the Rockport/Ipswich line station at
GE Works was also renamed to River Works. Following a major snowstorm in January 1977,
service on the Bedford line ended, closing the eight stations along the route. In March,
the Reading line station at Malden reopened, providing an interchange to the Orange line
subway. In Rhode Island, commuter service between Westerly and Providence ended in June
1977, with the state declining to fund the service. On the Lowell/Woburn line, a new
station opened in September 1977, providing access to the nearby Tufts University campus.
In October, the Framingham line station at Riverside closed, followed one month later
in November by the Providence branch station at East Foxboro. A new station was opened
in December on the Rockport branch however, with trains stopping at the newly constructed
Harbor station. Sometime that year, the Franklin line station at Rustcraft also closed, having
attracted very little ridership in the years prior.
Various stations around the network were also renamed around this time, in order to better
reflect where they were located. One of the more notable changes was on the South Acton
line, where Cambridge station was renamed to Porter Square, in preparation for a new
subway station being constructed nearby. In June, the South Acton line stations at Beaver
Brook and Clematis Brook were closed, along with the Lowell branch station at Winchester
Highlands. North of this station however, a new station
was opened in 1979 at Lechmere Warehouse, offering limited service to the adjacent warehouse
for the Lechmere department store. In September, the Reading line station at Malden Center
was closed, followed one month later by the Tufts University station on the Lowell/Woburn
line. That same month, construction began on the Southwest Corridor, forcing the suspension
of service on the Needham Line. As construction progressed into November, trains on the Providence/Stoughton
and Franklin lines were rerouted onto a new corridor, servicing three new stations on the
route to South Station. With this change, service to Hyde Park and Mount Hope ended,
while Back Bay was serviced by a new shuttle train to South Station, in addition to increased
service on the Framingham line. Service on the Reading line was extended to Haverhill
in December of that year, resuming service to seven stations along the route. Limited
rush hour service also travelled along the Lowell branch, servicing the station at Wilmington
on route. In January 1980, service on the South Acton
line was extended to Gardner, servicing five new stations. Later that month, trains on
the Lowell branch were extended three stations into New Hampshire, with service beginning
to Nashua, Manchester, and Concord. An additional station was added to this stretch in April,
with trains beginning service to Merrimack. That same month, the Haverhill/Reading line
station at Shawsheen closed once again. Budget cuts in January 1981 saw various stations
across the network close, and frequencies reduced across the remaining lines. On the
Concord/Woburn line, the branch to Woburn was permanently closed, with trains no longer
servicing Woburn or Cross Street. The Franklin and Providence/Stoughton line stations at
Uphams Corner and Morton Street also closed, having failed to attract significant ridership.
On the Rockport branch, West Gloucester was closed, while the Framingham line saw closures
at Auburndale and West Newton. The Franklin line station at Plimptonville and the Gardner/South
Acton line station at Silver Hill were also briefly closed, however protests from local
users saw service restored shortly afterwards. In February, the state of Rhode Island ended
subsidies to the Providence branch, with service cut back to Attleboro. In March, trains on
the Concord line into New Hampshire were cut back to Lowell, with the state deciding not
to fund the service. Service on the Framingham line resumed to Auburndale and West Newton
later that month, and a new station on the Gardner/South Acton line opened at Shirley
in May. The Framingham line saw a new station open
in August 1982 at West Natick, providing additional parking facilities for the route.
A fire in January 1984 destroyed the bridge leading into North Station, forcing the four
routes ending at the stop to be cut back. On the Rockport/Ipswich line, service was
cut back to a temporary station at Sullivan, while the Haverhill/Reading line now ended
at Oak Grove. Trains on the Lowell and Gardner/South Acton lines ended at a temporary platform
in East Cambridge, with a bus shuttle providing a link to the nearby Lechmere Green Line station.
Subsidized seasonal service to Cape Cod began in June 1984, with the Cape Cod and Hyannis
Railroad operating trains from Hyannis and Falmouth to the South Braintree station. In
September, a new station opened on the Lowell line at Mishawum Park. However one month later
in October, the Cape Cod station at Falmouth was closed.
January 1985 saw the closure of the Rockport branch station at Harbour, with another bridge
fire on the line temporarily suspending service. However, the new bridge at North Station was
completed that April, with trains on the Gardner/South Acton, Lowell, and Rockport/Ipswich lines
resuming service to the stop. Haverhill/Reading line trains also once again extended to North
Station, with the station at Malden Center once again reopening. In December, a new station
opened on the Rockport/Ipswich line at Chelsea, along with an additional station on the Rockport
branch at West Gloucester. One year later in January 1987, a dispute
over track ownership saw the Gardner/South Acton line cut back to Fitchburg. In October,
construction on the southwest corridor was finally completed, allowing trains on the
Franklin and Attleboro/Stoughton lines to be rerouted. The shuttle train to Back Bay
was discontinued, with trains on both lines resuming service to the stop, as well as to
a new station at Ruggles. Attleboro/Stoughton line trains also resumes service to Hyde Park,
while Franklin line trains resumed service to Readville. A new Fairmount line service
also began at that time, travelling along the former route from South Station to Fairmount.
Later that month, trains also resumed on the Needham line, travelling between Needham Heights
and South Station. In November, trains on the Fairmount line were extended one stop
west, meeting Franklin line trains at Readville. Attleboro branch trains were extended back
into Rhode Island in February 1988, with service resuming to Providence. In April, a special
events station was opened on the Framingham line at Yawkey, providing access to nearby
Fenway Park. The Franklin line was extended one stop west in June, with a new station
opening at Forge Park. That same month, a new branch of the Cape Cod railway began,
resuming service to Falmouth, and extending west to meet the Attleboro branch. However,
this extension was short lived, with service ceasing to the four new stations in September.
In October, all seasonal service into Cape Cod ended, with subsidies to the railway not
being renewed. One year later in January 1990, a new station
opened on the Franklin line at Dedham Corperate Center, followed in June by a new station
on the Attleboro branch at South Attleboro. Four years later in 1994, special events service
to Foxboro was revised, with trains now travelling via the Franklin line. At the same time, special
event service resumed to Providence, providing additional travel options from Rhode Island.
In September, the Framingham line was extended one stop west, with subsidized service resuming
to Worcester. Three years after the last expansion, two
new commuter rail lines were launched in 1997, providing new service to southeast Massachusetts.
In September, service began on the Middleborough/Lakeville and Kingston lines, servicing 14 new stations.
In November, the Lowell line station at Lechmere was closed, however later that month, an additional
station opened on the Kingston line, with a branch servicing a new stop at Plymouth.
The following year in October, service on the Ipswich branch was extended north to Newburyport
once again, servicing an intermediate stop at Rowley. Two years later in 2000, an infill
station was opened on the Framingham/Worcester line, with trains now stopping at Grafton.
A new station opened the following April on the Lowell line, with trains now servicing
Anderson/Woburn. That same month, Kingston/Plymouth and Middleborough/Lakeville line trains began
servicing a new station at JFK/UMass, offering an interchange with the Red line subway. In
May, limited rush hour trains on the Attleboro/Stoughton line began operating via the Fairmount line,
in order to relive congestion on the Southwest corridor.
Three new stations were opened on the Framingham/Worcester line in 2002, adding more intermediate stops
east of Worcester. In June, two new stations opened at Westborough and Southborough, while
Ashland station was added in August. Limited Attleborough/Stoughton line service
via the Fairmount line ended in November 2004, with all trips resuming via the Southwest
corridor. Rush hour trains on the Haverhill/Reading
line running via the Lowell line were revised in October 2006, now stopping at all shared
Lowell line stations except Mishawum. A third commuter rail line was launched in October
2007, ten years after the last expansion. Trains followed the existing commuter rail
lines from South Station to Quincy Center, before branching off to service seven new
stations to Greenbush. Three years later in December 2010, the Providence
branch was extended one stop south, servicing a new station at Theodore Francis Green Airport.
A second extension of the branch opened sixteen months later in April 2012, servicing a new
station at Wickford Junction. Various new station on the Fairmount line also began to
open in November of that year, starting with a new station at Talbot Avenue.
Seasonal service to Cape Cod resumed in May 2013, with a new weekend excursion train
named the CapeFlyer. Following the Middleborough/Lakeville line from South Station, the line continued
to Hyannis, providing connections to various ferry routes. More stations opened on the
Fairmount line that July, with new stops at Newmarket and Four Corners/Geneva. A new stop
was added to the CapeFlyer the following June, with an intermediate station opening at Wareham
Village. Natick station on the Framingham/Worcester
line was renamed in January 2015, with the stop now being known as Natick Center. On
the Fitchburg line, a one stop extension to Wachusett opened in September 2016, taking
the line to its present end station. The following year, an infill station opened on the Framingham/Worcester
line, with service beginning to the new stop at Boston Landing.
The final new station on the Fairmount line opened two years later in February 2019, with
Blue Hill Avenue station now being serviced. The Framingham/Worcester line station at Yawkey
was renamed to Lansdowne in April, following the renaming of the nearby street. Another
infill station was added to the CapeFlyer in May, with seasonal trains on the route
now stopping at Bourne. On the Franklin line, service to Foxboro was also expanded, with
regular weekday trips now operating to the stop.
However due to the COVID-19 pandemic, this additional weekday service was cancelled in
November 2020, with service once again being provided during special events only. This
brings us to the Boston commuter rail map that we know today.
In the years to come, more expansions are planned for the Boston commuter rail network,
which will see new stations and extensions open. In summer 2022, a new station will open
in Rhode Island on the Providence branch, with trains resuming service to Pawtucket/Central
Falls. In November 2023, an extension of the Middleborough/Lakeville line will open, adding
five new stations across two branches. A new station will be opened on the existing line
at Middleborough, with trains on both branches servicing another new station at East Tauton.
From there, the route will branch into two, with trains travelling to Fall River and New
Bedford. CapeFlyer trains will continue stopping at Middleborough/Lakeville, with the station
becoming seasonal only. That was the evolution of Boston’s commuter
rail network, giving us the twelve lines that we know today. If you haven’t already, be
sure to watch our videos on the evolution of Boston’s subway network, which you can
access by clicking the button in the top right corner. Don’t forget to leave a like if
you enjoyed this video, and comment down below to join in the discussion. My name’s Zach,
and I’ll be Vanishing Underground, until the next one.