Kendall/MIT (MBTA station)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| Kendall/MIT Station | |
 Kendall/MIT Station, Fall 2004 |
|
| Station statistics | |
|---|---|
| Address | Intersection of Main, Third Streets and Broadway, Cambridge, MA |
| Lines | MBTA Subway Red Line |
| Platforms | side platforms |
| Bicycle facilities | 58 spaces |
| Other information | |
| Opened | March 23, 1912 |
| Accessible |  |
| Owned by | Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority |
Kendall/MIT is a station on the rapid transit Red Line in Kendall Square at the intersection of Broadway and Main Street, in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Trains emerge from the Red Line tunnel just south/east of the station to cross the Charles River via the Longfellow Bridge. The station includes the Kendall Band, a public art installation of hand-operated musical sculptures that hang between the tracks at the station platform level and are operated by levers located on the side walls of the two platforms. The Kendall stop also features a prominent timeline detailing the history of the nearby Massachusetts Institute of Technology. There is no crossover within fare control; to reverse direction one must exit and re-enter the station, passing through fare gates again.
Contents |
[edit] Nearby destinations
- Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- Cambridge Center commercial buildings
- Kendall Square Cinema
- CambridgeSide Galleria Mall
- Shops, restaurants, and hotels
[edit] Bus connections
- CT2 Sullivan Station - Ruggles Station via Kendall/MIT (free transfer)
- 64 Oak Square via North Beacon St. & Central Sq., Cambridge (rush hours only)
- 68 Harvard/Holyoke Gate via Broadway
- 85 Spring Hill via Summer St. & Union Sq.
- Free "Wave" shuttle bus to the CambridgeSide Galleria and Kendall Square Cinema
- EZRide Shuttle to North Station via Cambridgeside Galleria & First Street
[edit] Accessibility
Kendall/MIT is wheelchair accessible. See MBTA accessibility.
[edit] Kendall Band
The Kendall Band is an interactive musical sculpture by Paul Matisse, grandson of French impressionist Henri Matisse. It was installed in 1987 at the station. Matisse and other artists were commissioned by the MBTA as part of a public art project called Arts on the Line.
The three Kendall "band members" are named Kepler, Pythagoras and Galileo, after the scientists Johannes Kepler, Pythagoras, and Galileo Galilei. Their aluminium, teak and steel forms hang between the inbound and outbound train platforms. Bystanders on either side have access to controls for sound making.
"Kepler" is a 125-pound metal ring whose ratcheted hammer strikes an F sharp.
"Pythagoras" is a series of long metal tubes tuned to a B minor, with slight vibrato. A lever can be used to slowly build momentum of giant swinging mallets. When struck, the tubes' sounds echo throughout the station.
"Galileo" is a sheet of metal which, when shaken, sounds like thunder.
As of May 2007, the operating handles on the inbound platform are broken and have yet to be repaired.[1]
As of July 2007, the operating handles reappeared and the Band is performing daily.
[edit] References
- ^ This Matisse seeks a patron, The Boston Globe, June 18, 2007
[edit] External links
| Preceding station |  MBTA |
Following station | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|
|
toward Alewife
|
Red Line |
