Bowdoin (MBTA station)

BOWDOIN
Wedge-shaped island platform at Bowdoin station
Station statistics
Address	Cambridge Street at New Chardon and Bowdoin Streets, Boston
Coordinates	42°21′41″N 71°03′44″W / 42.3614°N 71.0622°W / 42.3614; -71.0622Coordinates: 42°21′41″N 71°03′44″W / 42.3614°N 71.0622°W / 42.3614; -71.0622
Line(s)	Blue Line
Platforms	1 Wedge shaped island platform
Tracks	2
Other information
Opened	March 18, 1916
Owned by	Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority
Traffic
Passengers (2009)	1,454 (weekday average boardings)[1]
Services
Preceding station   MBTA   Following station Terminus Blue Line Government Center toward Wonderland

Bowdoin (pronounced BO-din) of the MBTA, is a station on the Blue Line, serving Bowdoin Square in Boston's Beacon Hill neighborhood. It is currently the downtown terminus of the line, although it may close if the line is extended or after Government Center is rebuilt.

History

Station sign showing Stone Chapel and School Street

Inbound side of the platform

Bowdoin station opened for service on March 18, 1916 as the terminus of the East Boston Tunnel, connecting Beacon Hill to Maverick Square. Along with Government Center, it replaced Court Street Station as the turnaround point for trolley cars from East Boston. The line was converted to heavy rail metro cars in 1925, and the loop has been a tight fit for rapid transit cars ever since. Blue Line cars are 48 feet long, shorter than the 65-foot Orange Line and 69-foot Red Line cars,^[2] partially because of the tight loop. Bowdoin is the only remaining turnaround loop on the MBTA's heavy rail lines; Wonderland and all Orange and Red Line termini simply use crossovers to reverse the direction of trains.

Current status

The station is lightly used except at rush hour. Prior to December 28, 2013, Bowdoin station was only open from 5:15AM to 6:30PM, Monday through Friday, excluding holidays. At all other times, trains terminated and originated service at Government Center station. The tight loop just past the station is used to turn around Blue Line trains at all times, sending them back to Government Center and onwards to Wonderland, in Revere. The platform is wedge shaped, with a single entrance at the wide end near the turnaround loop.

In 2008, the MBTA started running a mixture of 4-car and 6-car trains on the Blue Line, adding more long trains as new cars arrive from the manufacturer. Incoming 6-car trains can fit on the westbound platform where trains go out of service, but only 4-car trains can fit on the eastbound side where trains come into service after turning around. At Bowdoin only, passenger must press a "door open" button outside of the train to board a 6-car train.

Bowdoin station is currently open for all hours of service, including on weekends, from December 28, 2013 and continuing during the closure of the Callahan Tunnel and the subsequent closure of Government Center Station in Spring 2014.^[3][4]

Future

Bowdoin is slated to be closed once the Government Center renovation is complete, due to the short distance between the lengthened platforms. A second headhouse might be added to Government Center closer to Bowdoin Station on Cambridge Street. This would reduce the walking distance from 980 to 575 feet.^[5] Bowdoin will likely continue to be used as a turnaround loop, unless the proposed Blue Line extension tunnel to Charles/MGH is constructed.^[6][7]

Station layout

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Bowdoin (MBTA station).

• MBTA Blue Line -- Bowdoin Station
• Cambridge Street entrance from Google Maps Street View

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