This is quite possibly the furthest out an MBTA bus goes from any singular subway terminal. This route runs through Forest Hills to Walpole Center (near the CR station), via Roslindale, Dedham, Islington (Westwood), and Norwood, and it either serves directly or very closely 5 different Commuter Rail stations. So, let’s look at this route, shall we?
Not in service!
The 34E begins at Forest Hills Station in JP, and starts running down Washington Street. This is gonna be the road we’re on ALL THE WAY TO WALPOLE. Yes. We do NOT deviate from this road in the slightest! Rozzie, of course, is primarily residential and is more akin to a small city in of itself, while progressing on beyond, the sprawl begins to slowly become more evident. Of course, we also entered Dedham, passing both a park and the Dedham Mall in the process. No deviation into either, however. We had to interface with a weirdly-configured roundabout with the Providence Highway, and then we continued through the town center and in the backside of a strip mall. We’d then cross I-95 into Westwood, serving the Islington neighborhood (& the CR station, indirectly), and make a slight maneuver to go underneath the Franklin Line, only to continue into going underneath again. At this point, we were in Norwood, passing through the town center and by Norwood Depot. It actually looked like there were some places of interest, I need to come back here some time. We’d also pass by Norwood Hospital & Norwood Central, entering Walpole soon enough. Walpole was much of the same, just without hospitals. We sorta serve a school, though! Sunday runs terminate at a loop in East Walpole, while weekday/Saturday runs continue on up East St. and terminate at Walpole Center.
Rozzie!!!More housing!Parking lot!Oh no, stroad…Density!ENTERING DEDHAMDon’t enter!Oh christ…Fancy!Strip mall!I-95!!!!! WOOOO!!!!!!A side street, I think Islington is down thereOh no, not 11ft8’s evil twin lurking ahead…Hi, Franklin Line!Slightly deviatoryDensity!Norwood’s town center!Norwood Depot is somewhere down thereHi Franklin Line (again)Industrial stuffI’m getting tired, can I just go without captioning these?Farms??? I really don’t remember…A church!Another shot of said churchWalpole Center!And down there is Walpole Station!
The good: It’s a suburban route serving similar areas to the Franklin Line! There’s otherwise nothing out here for public transit, at that, so yeah. It also serves many town centers!
The bad: It short turns on Sundays. I guess, it’s okay, but c’mon… Also, why not run all the way to Walpole’s CR station???
Nearby points of interest: Norwood’s town center and Rozzie look interesting…
Overall, it’s alright. There’s nothing else out here (the Dedham Local Bus doesn’t exist anymore, either, to my awareness), so it’s pretty important. However, I do feel it’d be best supplemented with additional buses out here.
Okay, okay, I know I’m going to get some heat for reviewing a station undergoing major renovations, and for calling it “Lynn Center”. However, I REFUSE to call it “Central Square” because one already exists in Cambridge. Wait, waht? Oh, I called that blog entry “Central Square (Cambridge) (Red Line)”? Well shit, guess March ’23 me was already very aware that I’d have to do Lynn eventually. Well, here we go. Duty calls, I guess.
Very imposing concourse with Helvetica obstructed by the winter sunlight
I arrived here via the 426 express bus, taking almost a full hour to traverse the local streets of Revere, Saugus, Lynn, and the expressways out of Boston. The busway itself, serving as the North Shore’s primary transfer point, isn’t too much to scoff at. You have some shelters, a couple of bus stops, the “Downtown Lynn Bus Finder” thingy which is completely outdated. Hell, officially, the station actually has TWO entrances (one was blocked off, the other was via the busway), and you can’t even go up to the platform. There’s a lot of parking to go around though, and as stated earlier, the North Shore’s bus routes all converge here. There’s even a pair of CharlieCard machines, very rare outside rapid transit territory! Did I mention this place is very imposing, even moreso than Westborough or Canton Junction with their very, VERY big pedestrian bridges??? Yeah… Honestly though, the viaduct through downtown is kinda vibey though. But the station is insanely imposing, even by MBTA standards. Whelp, that’s all! Review over!
Bye!CharlieCard machines!
The good: It’s a very short and sweet station review! It’s also ADA accessible! The bad: You really thought I was done? Nearby points of interest: Downtown Lynn! Transit connections: All of the North Shore routes! Rating: 3/10, this is pure depression!
Alright, review over! NEXT!
Oh dear god…That’s very far…Parking!Sheltered crosswalk?! That’s a new one.The garage entrance
…wait, what? You mean to tell me COMMUTER RAIL SERVICE IS A COUPLE BLOCKS OVER OFF SILSBEE STREET, OFF FRIEND & ELLIS STREETS?! Oh you’ve gotta be shitting me….goddammit, Ben, Brooke, and Mx. Stuffundefined…, y’all are lucky I’m actually unhinged enough to do this, and that I’m a glutton for punishment. Well, duty calls…
Onwards…
So, I started to walk from the Lynn busway to what’ll be dubbed as “Lynnterim” from henceforth (portmanteau of “Lynn” and “interim”, if anyone is wondering on etymology). This station opened this past Monday (as of me writing this, on 12/21/23) as an accelerated method proposed by Keolis to get service to Lynn faster than originally anticipated (9 months ahead of schedule!!!). Announcements at North Station advise those needing accessibility to board the two cars closest to the locomotive. Why? Well, the platform is essentially an elongated mini-high, about as long as the platforms at Old Saybrook or any Shore Line East station. And, quite truthfully, while the walk felt long (it was only 10 minutes of walking, even passing the Capitol Diner), the station itself is actually….pretty decent, all things considered! The PA system is surprisingly very beefy (much more than Pawtucket’s!) and the entire platform is covered, and also has benches and wastebaskets, which is nice. They even went through the trouble of installing proper departure boards! I repeat, DEPARTURE BOARDS FOR A TEMPORARY STATION! Oh, it’s also fully ADA accessible. Neat! There’s also a lot on the inbound side, however it’s a municipal lot and not an MBTA one. Honestly, very good even by normal Commuter Rail standards, all things considered.
DINER!The almighty Lynn ViaductMore wayfinding and ARTNo commuter parking on the outbound side!The way to the platformI spy the inbound platform…Yep. Still difficult to photograph.A fully covered platform?! That’s a new one!Helvetica!Municipal parking!Oh, cool, a train!The train coming to a halt
The good: The busway is in downtown and serves all the North Shore routes, which is nice! Furthermore, there’s A LOT of parking. The Lynnterim station is also pretty decent for a temporary one, with a fully covered platform, benches, a decent PA system, more parking, and level boarding.
The bad: The garage is very depressing. Like, I hate saying it because it stands out a lot and it’s very imposing, but I can’t help but feel it’s an eyesore… Furthermore, barely any buses serve Lynnterim. I guess this isn’t a problem if you’re able-bodied, but I can’t help but feel it might be dicey for someone who needs an ADA accessible bus to CR transfer…
Nearby points of interest: Downtown Lynn, of course! Near the CR platforms? Well, you got the Council on Aging right next door and a lot of suburban sprawl close by… sorry!
Overall, the station itself is pretty good. However, it just feels very spread apart, which is to be expected given the temporary nature and the context this exists in. But still, it’s just annoying. At least there’s also a copious amount of parking, which is neat!
Well, I never thought I’d be writing this. By the time this blog entry comes out, I should have the end result of my efforts here, but until then this will remain a draft. For context, I started writing this on 11/9/2023. It will almost likely be January or February of 2024. Maybe even March. Maybe I’ll be 23 by the time the end result turns up at my doorstep. Maybe Chelsea vs. NYC: The Nomenclature Rant(TM) will be written and completed by then. Who knows. (spoiler: it was 12/12/23, much earlier than anticipated) But, until then, I will be documenting my misadventures involving the State Department and obtaining a passport.
The first attempt starts when a friend texts me and pesters me about getting a passport. Now, anyone who knows me would know I’m staunchly against getting one on two grounds: 1. They’re stupidly overpriced (over $200?! Really?!) and 2. …why do we need to carry a freakin’ book around, when a normal ID has all the info that a police officer would need?
Anyone who also knows me well enough, also knows I’m not one to bail out on commitments, either made by myself or someone else (if that “someone else” is overly pushy, I’ll do it to shut them up – if it’s not illegal), as I otherwise feel like an asshole if I bail out. Of course, that “commitment” can be something as simple as getting a paper in by week’s end, or something as elaborate as documenting every train and rapid transit station in southern New England. And, so, I felt obligated to buy a passport now that I got put into that predicament. So, upon being told by my friend they made an appointment in my name, on my behalf, for Thursday (2023-11-09), I obliged. I go through everything, print everything out, go crazy looking for my birth certificate to photocopy, photocopy everything I need, and bring it in, and I pay the $200+……or it would be so, IF THE DAMN DEPARTMENT OF STATE WASN’T SO DAMN NEEDY! YEAH, NOT ONLY DO YOU NEED TO PHOTOCOPY EVERYTHING, THEY ALSO DEMAND YOU HAVE ORIGINALS ON HAND TOO! Like, why even photocopy at that point?! Just save the damn trees! And I say this, as someone who prefers double-tracking through the Needham wetlands and sending the Orange Line through it, over a double extension solution! (that is, Orange Line to Millennium Park & double branching the Green Line to split at Newton Highlands)
And so, I walked away from the Garden City post office defeated and (thankfully) not short $200+…….for now, went back to West Warwick to run some errands, and picked up a non-photocopied, well, copy of my birth certificate to cover my ass (hopefully they’ll take it!), and got lunch at a local restaurant. Next attempt would have me go down to the Nooseneck Hill Post Office, just outside Woodland Manor, on 2023-11-20.
The long corridor of Post Office Plaza – the office building housing the Garden City Post Office in Cranston
ATTEMPT #2: 2023-11-09 to 2023-11-20 “APPROACHING: Rhode Island Route 3…and…Reservoir Road…..”
Okay, so after waiting for about 2 weeks from the last part, I took the trip out to Woodland Manor in the borderlands. Scheduled appointment time: 10:30 AM. My bus arrived at the end of my street at about 9:40ish, and would get to Woodland Manor for 10:06, about 3-4 minutes ahead of schedule. Neat! This gave me about 24 minutes to spare in the borderlands. While annoying, it wasn’t too bad to work with since I was hungry and there was a Cumberland Farms right there. And then came 10:30ish.
One of the clerks asked me what I needed, and I told them I was there for a passport appointment. I hung tight for the passport lady to call me up (under deadname, sadly, but oh well!), and…..well, it actually wasn’t painful! She looked over the paperwork, confirmed that I needed photo services done too (admittedly, I didn’t trust myself with this part DIYed), and went over everything in a clear and concise manner, right down to correcting any erroneous information or the offchance the photo taken got rejected. But, with that all taken care of, everything was all submitted for a grand total of…….drumroll please……
*drumrolls*
$212. Yikes. But, I knew what I was getting myself into here (at least moreso than the original plan for the 2023 Thanksgiving Special, which got canned for a combination of self-preservation and an inability to find a fitting helmet in time). Besides, I had 2 and a half hours to spare before work, and what better way to spend it from there than to buy lunch? From there, I opted to go down to Arctic, buy a burger (with 2x hot weenies, fries, and hot chocolate!) from Ferrucci’s NY System, and then go to work. Overall, good food if you’re willing to tolerate eating in a locally-owned establishment plastered with some right-wing propaganda.
The borderlands…Burgers & Fries!Hot weenies! (no onions!)HOT CHOCOLATE!!!THE MUGSHOT!
PART 3: THE ARRIVAL (2023-11-20 to 2023-12-12) *ding dong!* “[DEADNAME], YOU GOT SOME MAIL FROM THE STATE DEPARTMENT!” -stepdad, probably (yeah sadly they deadname me. Oh well!)
Well, this happened MUCH earlier than anticipated! All of….THREE WEEKS?! Huh, interesting. Actually, the issuing date was listed for just last week (as of me writing this), which lines up with when I got a phone call from a 617 number that I didn’t recognize. Turns out, it was, in fact, the State department, and they wanted to double check that “X” was, in fact, my gender. Yep! And then came the morning of 12/12/23, as I was about to go shower and get ready for work. So, I go shower, open the packages from the State Department, and wouldn’t ya know it: I got my birth certificate copy back! Furthermore, I got a US passport! What’s in it? Well……not a lot, actually. I’m not even sure what it’s made out of, but it feels like a hardcover book. I also admittedly don’t dig the monochromatic color scheme, but whatever. I’m also not sure what the square-shaped Pokeball thing is supposed to be. The first page is a picture of what looks to be from the Civil War the War of 1812 and some lyrics from the national anthem (thanks Avery for letting me in on this!), and the page adjacent has a Lincoln quote and a bit about the Secretary of State (Anthony Blinken as of the writing of this!) requesting that the bearer be let into a country without delay or hindrance. How often is this request honored? I don’t know, and I’m a bit scared to find out.
The cover!The first two pages
Well, up next is the actual “ID” bit of the passport. For the sake of my own safety, I can’t really show this part as applicable to me specifically, however below is an example. Here we go describing what’s on it, from top to bottom. On the top row you have your passport type (P is for your standard US passport. Not sure if this holds true for other countries, nor do I know what the code is for special-variant US passports), your country’s code (the USA in this case), and the number. Then, you have your surname, your legal first & middle names, nationality (is usually the same as country’s code in long form), birthday, gender marker (X in my case. This may not be an option elsewhere, and most places don’t allow one to self-declare gender), place of birth (how is this relevant?????), followed by issuance and expiration dates. There’s also a bunch of characters at the bottom that I’m not sure what they’re for.
The ID page (not mine)
The next page goes into detail about security measures implemented, along with a blank to fill in emergency contact info. Lastly, you have about 26 or so blank pages. Apparently they’re called “visa pages” however I’m not exactly sure what a debit card company has to do with this. Then there’s the rear, which has a QR code that brings you to the State Department’s website. Neat!
The back page
So, overall, was this worth it? Eh, I guess it depends on which lens you look through at it. If you don’t have even an inkling of interest in international travel? Not worth it, and you just wasted $200+. But, if you have even the slightest of interest in international travel, why not? Granted, it’s steep, but look at it this way: for every time you use it, the cost per use goes down, and there’s 26 blank pages, which brings it to…..$8.15 a use if used fully (for clarification, the math here is $212 divided by 26 pages, or 212/26). While I still don’t exactly see how $200+ is a “good” price, I’m sure if I find myself in situations where it’s actually needed, I might see how valuable it actually is. And, with that, concludes Chelsea vs. the State Department.
Alrighty. So, I mentioned Islington was pretty deep into suburbia. Well, meet its twin, Endicott. Endicott is waist-deep into suburbia. I’m talking, so deep that you’ll be walking for at least 30-40 minutes to reach any transit connection that isn’t the Franklin Line. With that in mind, here we go.
Helvetica!A better shot. That map is outdated.
Endicott, like Islington, is deep into suburbia. However, buses don’t even run out here. To describe how far into suburbia it is, it’s so deep I had to walk 40 minutes for a bus connection – at Readville. Yeah. But, the station is essentially a copy-paste of Islington. You have bicycle infrastructure (sorta), shelters, benches, wastebaskets, the classic red dot matrix signage, a grade crossing to change sides, and a small amount of parking. There’s more parking lining Grant Avenue, however I didn’t check it out, as I wanted to get to Readville to meet up with Brooke. But, it exists. There used to be a path to the inbound platform, however that’s now an entire street. Boooooooo… Parking is also permit-only, Dedham residents only. So, bugger off to Dedham Corporate Center! Overall, I kinda like the station, and the area is a vibe in general. Hell, it’s probably a treat to railfan during the autumn months as well.
Bollards and a main roadBye!!!I hate these signs.Not yet!Parking!Bicycle racks!See ya!Towards Forge Park & Foxboro!Towards Readville!They built a station in someone’s backyard – not once, but twice!
The good: It’s in a suburban neighborhood and isn’t car-oriented! It’s also rather peaceful like Islington and has the amenities one might need – including shelter.
The bad: Eh, it’s inaccessible. There’s also little in the way of transit out here. It’s also, if memory serves, the least-used station on the Franklin Line, for what it’s worth, so maybe it’s also better off a flag stop. But, like, if you’re driving – just use Readville or Dedham Corporate Center! Hell, if you’re not doing anything in the immediate area, you may as well use either anyways as there’s no T buses out here! Not even the Dedham Local Bus runs here!
Nearby points of interest: Not a lot, and even less than Islington’s list of interesting places (somehow)
Overall, good god, just why???? This station’s literally balls-deep in suburbia with no connections. It literally only exists to serve the walkshed and little else, and it doesn’t even do that well. Even West Gloucester fills this better! Sorry, Endicott!
So, after doing the Norwood duo, I took the 34E back, however there were two pieces of unfinished business. The first, was a block and a half away from the 34E in Islington. In fact, it was Islington’s Commuter Rail station. Let’s look at this station located in suburbia, shall we? To describe from what a reader said to me, “they built a station in someone’s backyard”, to which I say there’s two stations that fit the bill here. The other station will be the next entry on this blog. (wink wink nudge nudge)
Helvetica!
So, who here remembers the 10ft6 bridge at East St. in Westwood? Anybody? If not, here’s a video to remind y’all of what it was. It’s since been raised to 13ft3 (or rather, more likely, the road was lowered to make that the clearance) and now trucks aren’t careening into it and exploding spectacularly like in years prior. See, look!
The walk was actually rather pleasant. Crossing East Street into Carroll Street, the entrance to the inbound platform seems innocent enough – enough so to where as Miles put it in his entry on this station, one could easily mistake it for someone’s driveway! It’s such a cute little station! I mean, it’s got a small amount of parking, a 135ft low level platform on each side, crossovers, some benches, shelters, and if memory serves me right even a bicycle rack! There’s also a red dot matrix sign. Bleugh. But, overall, a decent (if inaccessible) station. It’s so cute, too!!! And, it’s in walking distance of the 34E!!!
A cute unassuming little entranceThe station!It’s so cute!!!Parking!Towards Forge Park & Foxboro!Towards Boston!The Grafton Ave. entranceThey built a station in someone’s backyard!Middle-of-track shotAnd another one!Train!
The good: It’s such a cute little station! Furthermore, Islington is kinda town center-y, so it’s in a relatively dense (vs. the rest of the town, which doesn’t say much as it’s still single-family housing) area. It’s also relatively walkable too, although it’s a shame US-1 is close by. Furthermore, the 34E is close by, too!
The bad: It’s all single-family housing!!! Yikes. It’s also inaccessible, which stinks. Also, it’s so damn close to Dedham Corporate Center (which is also cheaper!) that, odds are, if you’re driving, it’s better to drive there and park.
Nearby points of interest: Not a lot… A couple of businesses exist on Washington Street, but nothing stood out.
Transit connections: Commuter Rail (Franklin, Foxboro) MBTA bus (34E on Washington St.)
Overall, it’s a cute little station. I like it. Sometimes, a nice small suburban station without a major parking sink is nice to have, even. But, inaccessibility does take away from it, as does proximity to Dedham Corp. Eww.
And now we’re at the OTHER Norwood station! Norwood Depot doesn’t have a depot, but it is in Norwood Center. Did someone swap the name plates for these?! Well, whatever.
Helvetica!
The station has the mini-highs at the grade crossing, which is convenient, AND they have stuff on them. Benches, no less! Furthermore, they line the platform, which extends into the woods a bit. There’s also some parking, and a red dot matrix sign as well. Ugh. Well, whatever. You also have some suburban TOD in the form of apartment complexes, a kiss & ride, and even some bicycle racks. Yeah, this is actually pretty decent! Nice! Just no station building.
TRAIN!The gates are down!We stan suburban density!Towards Foxboro & Forge Park!Parking!UH OH – BRAND GUIDELINES VIOLATION!The mini-high!A crossing!Not sure what that building isI hate photographing these signs. Why do I even try?Curvy!Towards Readville!
The good: It’s in the town center, has some parking, stuff on the mini-high, and some TOD around it!
The bad: I guess the worst thing this station has going for it is being too damn close to Norwood Central. I legitimately can’t think of much. Raise the platforms a bit?
Nearby points of interest: Norwood Center!
Transit connections: Commuter Rail (Franklin, Foxboro) MBTA bus (34E, on Washington St.)
Overall, I like this station. There’s not much wrong with it, however the best change would be a full length high platform and some kind of up & over/down & under to change sides.
Next stop on the Franklin Line that I visited, when I did my trip on 11/30/23, were the Norwood duo. First stop here, is Norwood Central.
Helvetica!
The station is sorta similar to West Natick in some ways. It’s a giant parking sink, except instead the area is much more suburban than in Natick. You have your standard mini-high with amenities, a proper departure board on both platforms, crossings, and a LOT of parking. There’s also solar panels covering the parking. Neat! There’s also a station building which isn’t leased out presently. As for the neighborhood, it’s suburbia, and you have Norwood Hospital under construction. It’s also kinda industrial, but it’s also seen a lot of redevelopment in recent years, which is nice.
The mini-high!Norwood Hospital!Down to one track?!The platforms and the sea of parkingThe other mini-high and said sea of parkingThe station buildingBench!The station depotThe inbound – as seen from a nearby street
The good: It’s in a somewhat dense area! It’s also seen immense amounts of redevelopment as of late as well, which is nice. There’s also A LOT of parking.
The bad: WHY ARE THE MINI-HIGHS BARREN?! Is this the freakin’ Needham Line?! Also, it’s not really in Norwood Center – in spite of the name.
Nearby points of interest: Norwood Center is a short walk away! Norwood Hospital is also nearby along with some TOD!
Transit connections: Commuter Rail (Franklin, Foxboro) MBTA bus (34E on Washington St.)
Overall, just, why? Why?! THIS STATION COULD’VE BEEN A 7 OR 8 IF THEY DIDN’T MAKE THE MINI-HIGH BARREN!!!!!
WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAALPOLE!!!!!!! Yeah, it’s one of those kinds of stations. Let’s take a look.
Helvetica!
Okay, so this station weirds me out. You have a decrepit station building that has nothing in it, a low-level platform, a lot of parking spread out between two or three lots, a grade crossing for the southeastern leg of Lewis’s Wye for both cars AND a second one for pedestrians, and it’s a short walk from the 34E bus (yes, the MBTA runs BUSES out here!), AND Foxboro trains can’t serve the station. Oh yeah, you do have your usual amenities and a red dot matrix sign. And it’s inaccessible.
The rather short walk to the Commuter Rail from the 34EParking!This feels weird.Pedestrian grade crossingThe platform and a diamond junction?!More parking and apartments!Yet another crossing!Red dot matrix signage!The station building. Kinda empty.Here comes a train to Forge Park!
The good: It’s got a lot of parking and is close to Walpole’s town center! It’s also just flat-out unusual being in the middle of a diamond junction. Furthermore, you (sorta) have a connection for the 34E as well. The station building is cool – even if unused.
The bad: THIS IS THE MOST-USED INACCESSIBLE STATION AS OF LAST COUNT! YEAH. ALL 700 SOMEODD PEOPLE WHO USED THIS STATION AT LAST COUNT BETTER BE ABLE-BODIED OR ELSE THEY’RE GONNA HAVE A REALLY BAD TIME – OR THEY’D BE BETTER OFF USING THE 34E. HOW ABOUT THAT AS A FUCK YOU?!
Nearby points of interest: There seemed to be a few cool spots in Walpole Center!
Transit connections: Commuter Rail (Franklin) MBTA bus (34E)
Overall, this station could be good. Raise the damn platforms and/or bring the 34E closer! Please!
So, I ended up taking a ride on the Franklin Line all the way to the very end (first time I’ve ridden the Franklin Line beyond Readville!) and decided to do Forge Park. I also wanted to railfan a little at the Forge Parkway grade crossing, so there’s that too. Anyways, what is Forge Park like? Well, here we go.
Or, Forge Park/ROUTE 495???I don’t think God intended for pedestrians to walk Route 140…
So, my first order of business was to railfan that damn grade crossing. I wanted to! Could you blame me?! And, quite truthfully, I think the treacherous walk down Route 140 was worth it. Just look!
CLEAR!THE CROSSINGCP FORGEThis entire area is one big planned development.Ready for departure!Cresting the curve at Forge Parkway!The purring cat of the Commuter RailBye!!!
Okay, so I walked down West Central St. to the north parking lot. Yes, this station has TWO lots. And, as a byproduct, it also is the only station to have doors open on both sides (at least during peak hours) because of said dual-platform setup. This is unlike any other station where the doors open either on the left (for islands, usually) or right (for sides, usually). This is more like if someone made Park Street or Sullivan a terminal station. Yeah. The southern platform has the mini-high, there’s your usual amenities, a red dot matrix sign or two, and even a station building which looked closed. How sad. Oh well!
Parking!That’s a lot of parkingThe station headhouse from afarIt’s so beautiful…A pedestrian overpassWELCOME TO FORGE PARK/495The station building. It looks like it hasn’t been used in a bit.The mini-high and a crossingThe south parking lot
The good: It’s clear the station is built to serve as Franklin’s (& northern RI’s) parking sink. For that, it does the job – and pretty well at that. It’s also got two platforms, making it easier to access both lots while a train dwells (which happens a lot!). Furthermore, it’s also right off I-495 as well. It’s also accessible, unlike Dean College/Franklin Station (yeah, that’s a mouthful!)
The bad: Eh, the station house is a mess. Would also be nice if the north platform had a mini-high too – or if both/either platforms were full-length high level.
In terms of total length, the 70 is one of the longer local bus routes in MBTA bus territory, clocking in at about 10 miles. So, what do those 10 miles have in store? Let’s take a look.
Waltham’s Central Square!
So, some runs of the route originate at Market Basket, and a couple does a deviatory loop around the Cedarwood neighborhood before going to Waltham’s Commuter Rail station. However, my run originates at Waltham as a short-turn. The run begins by going down US-20 and going over the Commuter Rail tracks. There’s some semblances of density around here, however the majority of it isn’t until Watertown. It’s largely a suburban stroad. Hey, we also passed by the Gore Estate (no, not Al Gore! A historical figure named Christopher Gore. Never heard of him until writing this.), and US-20 began becoming more lined with smaller businesses until we reached Watertown Square (the former Green Line’s A branch terminal). Across the river is the Watertown bus terminal – the only bus-only terminal with parking. However, we didn’t serve it. We continued down and turned onto Arsenal Street. Now, on the side of the bus I sat on, it was very, VERY dense, in stark contrast to the suburban housing across the street. Now, is this what they mean by upzoning in practice?
A churchHello, Fitchburg Line!Housing!More of the sameApartment complexes!Watertown Square!Some density?DENSITY!!!O HECC
Continuing further down Arsenal Street, we passed by both the Watertown Mall (on my side) and Arsenal Yards (the other side), both were pretty sizable shopping centers. Then, we crossed the Charles River, cut through Allston- IS THAT A ROMAN COLISEUM?! No. It’s actually just Harvard’s stadium. DAMN, they got some taste though! Anyways, we crossed the Charles again, this time into Cambridge, turning onto Memorial Drive and River Street, through some neighborhoods and to Central Square. Lastly, we turned down Mass. Ave. I got off on Mass. Ave., however the bus still continues for another block and turns around on a side street.
“Classy Walmut” – BrookeCHAAAARLESEww, traffic!…Welcome to Allston?Green space!HOLY FUCKING SHIT A ROMAN COLISEUM!Density!The Charles, again!…welcome to Cambridge?An intersection near Central SquareSee ya!
The good: It’s a largely direct route from Waltham to Central Square and almost Kendall/MIT. Furthermore, it serves a couple of malls and Watertown Square as well! Neat! Headways are pretty decent too and it’s the only bus to (relatively frequently) serve Waltham on Saturdays (and is the only one on Sundays).
The bad: I mean, a consistent 15/20/30/etc. minute headway would be nice. There’s also too many damn variants of the route (to Cedarwood on weekdays, sometimes to Market Basket???). At that point, just send to Kendal Green!
Nearby points of interest: Waltham’s Central Square, Cambridge’s Central Square, Watertown Square, Arsenal & Watertown Malls, MIT, and even Market Basket to name some! Also Harvard’s stadium!
Overall, it’s an alright route. But, why the inconsistent headways and why are there too many variants of it?!
