Boston – Wilmington Junction railway line
| Boston MA-Wilmington Junction MA | |
|---|---|
,_1890s.jpg) Boston North Station (1890s)
| |
| Route length: | 31 km |
| Gauge : | 1435 mm ( standard gauge ) |
| Dual track : | today: Fells – Reading earlier: entire route |
| Society: | MBTA |
| Right of joint use: | PAR |
The railway Boston Wilmington Junction is a railway line in Massachusetts ( United States ). It is approximately 19 miles long and connects the cities of Boston , Somerville , Medford , Malden , Melrose , Wakefield , Reading and Wilmington . The standard-gauge line is now owned by the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority , which operates passenger services. In addition, freight trains run by Pan Am Railways , which has the right to use the route.
history
The Boston and Maine Railroad operated trains from Boston to Maine in the early 1840s, which had to share the main line of the Boston and Lowell Railroad between Boston and Wilmington . Since there were always hindrances in the operation, the railway company planned to build its own line to Boston parallel to Boston & Lowell. At the same time they wanted to connect places that were east of the Boston & Lowell route and had previously had no direct rail access, such as Reading, Wakefield, Melrose and Malden. On March 16, 1844, the Boston and Maine Extension Railroad Company received the concession for the route. The company was formally set up on April 16 and carried out the construction. The line was opened to traffic on July 1, 1845. Operation was run by Boston & Maine, which bought the line on September 10, 1845. Since the city of Boston did not allow steam locomotives on Canal Street, the trains had to be pulled by oxen from there to the terminus on Haymarket Square. A few years later, however, the railway company received the operating license for steam trains to the terminus. As early as the 1850s, this terminus was closed for space reasons and a larger station was built on Causeway Street on the site of today's North Station. The section from there to the terminus at Haymarket Square was shut down and merged with the city's tram network, which was soon buried in this area and is now part of the Boston Subway .
Traffic on the route developed well and the initially single-track line was expanded to double-track in the 1850s. After Boston & Maine had taken over other railway companies that also operated their own terminus in Boston, Boston North Station was opened in 1893 , initially as North Union Station.
In 1958 the Boston & Maine closed several stations along the route for passenger traffic, namely Somerville, Wellington, Edgeworth, Oak Grove and Fells. The following year it ceased passenger services between Reading and Wilmington Junction. Long-distance and regional trains that were supposed to go beyond Reading were diverted over the former Boston & Lowell mainline. Now only suburban trains ran from Boston to Reading over the route. The second track north of Reading was then dismantled. From 1972 there was only a single track between Reading Junction and Fells, as the space next to the railway line was needed for the construction of a subway line, which was completed in 1977 to Oak Grove. Platforms for the railroad were built in Sullivan Square in Somerville and Oak Grove, but the suburban trains did not stop here. You can only change to the underground at Malden Center station, which both modes of transport use.
The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) has operated both the subway and suburban trains since 1976 . She had taken over the railway line from Boston & Maine, which, however, still had the right to use it. This right passed in 1983 to Guilford Transportation , which took over Boston & Maine and which has operated under the name Pan Am Railways since 2006 . In December 1979, the MBTA reopened passenger services north of Reading by leading most of the suburban trains to Haverhill no longer via Wilmington, but via Reading. In North Wilmington, a new stop was built for these trains on the site of the previous station.
Route description
The route began in Haymarket Square in Boston. It led along Canal Street to Causeway Street, where Boston North Station is now. The route crosses the Charles River using a lift bridge . Immediately thereafter, the Charlestown freight yard joins, where the train turns north. In Somerville it passes under the subway, which here is an elevated railway. This subway, the Orange Line, now runs directly alongside the railway to the north as well. In the further course the Mystic River is crossed. The railway line now runs through the Wellington district of the city of Medford, with a short branch line in the center. Further north, the train now reaches Malden and the Malden Center station, which is shared with the U-Bahn. The terminus of the subway in Oak Grove is also developed as a shared three-track station, but the suburban trains do not stop here.
In the further course, several breakpoints connect the cities of Melrose and Wakefield. In Wakefield, two railroad lines once branched off and ran to the northeast. Today only one of the two lines serves as a rarely used siding. In Wakefield the route turns northwest and after a few kilometers reaches Reading. Two stations used to be served here, but they were closed in the 1970s and replaced by a new station located between the two. Although many trains end here, there is only a simple platform on the continuous track. Trains to be parked will return to the old Reading Station upon arrival, where there are sidings. The railway line is again single-track from the old Reading station and runs for several kilometers to North Wilmington. After the cessation of passenger traffic on this section, the station was closed, but reopened in 1979, now as a stop with an extremely short platform that only allows one car to get on and off. Shortly afterwards you reach Wilmington Junction, which is located in the middle of the forest. The former passenger station was used exclusively for changing to the two railway lines that lead or cross here.
passenger traffic
Passenger traffic has always played a major role on the railway line. In 1869, 41 trains a day left Boston Station on the route. Eight of them drove to Medford, 15 trains drove to Wakefield Junction and partly on the routes departing there, ten trains drove to Reading and the remaining eight trains drove to Wilmington Junction and on in the direction of Lawrence. Traffic declined slightly after several interurban trams opened around 1900 that also connected Wilmington and Boston. One of these lines ran parallel to the railway line and connected the same places. In 1916, there were 47 trains Monday to Friday, 52 trains on Saturdays and 16 trains on Sundays from Boston. After that, the demand decreased noticeably, as many commuters switched to their own vehicles. In 1941 there were 40 trains on weekdays, and in 1960 29 trains. In 2010, the MBTA offered 23 trains on weekdays, ten of which only run to Reading. At the weekend there are six trains, all of which continue to Haverhill.
Sources and further reading
- Individual evidence
- ↑ see timetables of the route from the years mentioned.
- ↑ Current timetable of the Haverhill Line (PDF; 183 kB) ( Memento from June 17, 2012 in the Internet Archive )
- literature
- Ronald D. Karr: The Rail Lines of Southern New England. A Handbook of Railroad History. Branch Line Press, Pepperell, MA 1995. ISBN 0-942147-02-2
- Mike Walker: Comprehensive Railroad Atlas of North America. New England & Maritime Canada. (2nd edition) SPV-Verlag, Dunkirk (GB), 2010. ISBN 1-874745-12-9
- Web links