Wait, didn’t I already do this? Oh, OH…..that was the station now named Lakeville! Okay. Well, here’s new Middleborough, opened as part of the South Coast extension. Well, I guess duty calls. With that, here’s …the last T station I have to cover on this blog. Let’s go.
The station configuration is pretty standard, with a singular side platform and 2 tracks, one used for freight movements. There’s a shelter at various spots along the platform, a departure board, another more modern board at the station entrance, ramps from West Grove St., a pedestrian path to a nearby side street, a sizeable parking lot which can get filled up VERY QUICKLY. GATRA also has a bus stop here, but the connection is rather bad. The platform itself is level, expected, and there’s also benches and whatnot. I don’t remember if they’re hostile or not. As for the station walkshed, unlike Lakeville, it’s actually pretty good, all things considered. I mean, yeah, it’s still a mile walk to Middleborough Center, but that’s A LOT BETTER than the alternative. Overall though, for a suburban station that’s pretty far from Boston, it’s not that bad!
The good: It’s pretty close to Middleborough Center! The walkshed’s actually REALLY good, all things considered. It’s also intended primarily as the I-495 parking sink, and the amount of parking roughly parallels Lakeville (& really, there’s not much you can do with extra space if the station is in a wye). Furthermore, it’s got your usual modern-day station affairs and whatnot.
The bad: Really, I can’t think of many bad things. I guess the fact it’s got one platform when there REALLY SHOULD BE TWO is bad, ops-wise. Eww.
Nearby points of interest: Middleborough Center is a mile away!
Transit connections:
Commuter Rail (Fall River, New Bedford)
GATRA (Link 4, Downtown Middleborough Shuttle)
Overall, in terms of location, this is probably one of the best non-downtown stations on the entire system. It’s suburban in nature, yes it’s a park & ride, but it’s also not that bad for pedestrian access, all things considered. Could it be better? Of course. But, at least an attempt was made to accommodate pedestrian access from the nearby neighborhoods.
Rating: 7.5/10
