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Wellesley Square station

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Coordinates: 42°17′51″N 71°17′38″W / 42.29755°N 71.29375°W / 42.29755; -71.29375
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Wellesley Square
Station platforms viewed from Crest Road in 2013
General information
Location1 Grove Street
Wellesley, Massachusetts
Coordinates42°17′51″N 71°17′38″W / 42.29755°N 71.29375°W / 42.29755; -71.29375
Line(s)Worcester Line
Platforms2 side platforms
Tracks2
Construction
Parking224 spaces ($4.50 fee)
Other information
Fare zone3
History
Openedc. 1845
Rebuilt1889, 1962[1], 2024–2025
Previous namesWest Needham, Wellesley
Passengers
2018626 (weekday average boardings)[2]
Services
Preceding station MBTA Following station
Natick Center
toward Worcester
 Framingham/​Worcester Line Wellesley Hills
toward South Station
Former services
Preceding station New York Central Railroad Following station
Natick
toward Albany
 Boston and Albany Railroad
Main Line
 Wellesley Hills
toward Boston
Location
Map

Wellesley Square station is a commuter rail station on the MBTA Commuter Rail Framingham/Worcester Line, located just north of the MA 16-MA 135 intersection in downtown Wellesley, Massachusetts. It serves both walk-up and park-and-ride commuters, with a 224-space parking lot for the latter group. The station has low-level platforms and is not accessible; accessible mini-high platforms are under construction.

History

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The 1889-built station in June 1959

The Boston & Worcester Railroad (B&W), extending outwards from Boston, reached through the West Parish of Needham in mid-1834.[3] In 1839, the line was double tracked through the area.[4] Around 1844, the railroad proposed to relocate the Needham station building to West Needham, which had more population.[5] A new station building was constructed at West Needham within a year instead.[6][1]

It was renamed to Wellesley after the adjacent village in 1863, though the West Parish did not formally separate from Needham to become Wellesley until 1881.[7] The wood-framed building was moved half a mile to the east in 1889 (where it still stands, in use as a restaurant), when H. H. Richardson's successors Shepley, Rutan and Coolidge designed a stone Richardsonian Romanesque station for the Boston & Albany Railroad (B&A), which had taken over the B&W.[1]

The 1889-built depot was demolished around 1962 to make room for a post office; only bare asphalt platforms remained.[8] Amtrak began stopping the daily Bay State at Wellesley and Newtonville on January 16, 1972.[9] The Bay State was discontinued on March 1, 1975; when the Lake Shore Limited was introduced that October, it did not stop at Wellesley.[10][11][12] In 1977 or 1978, the station was renamed Wellesley Square to differentiate it from the other two stations in Wellesley.[13][14] Bay State service resumed on October 28, 1984; it stopped at Wellesley until October 25, 1986.[15][16]

Accessibility

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In 2019, the MBTA listed Wellesley Square as a "Tier I" accessibility priority.[17] In June 2021, the MBTA issued a $28 million design contract for a project to add a third track from Weston to Framingham, including reconstruction of the three Wellesley stations and West Natick station. The project was expected to cost around $400 million, of which rebuilding Wellesley Square station would be $31-35 million, with completion in 2030.[18]

In 2024, the MBTA tested a temporary freestanding accessible platform design at Beverly Depot. These platforms do not require alterations to the existing platforms, thus skirting federal rules requiring full accessibility renovations when stations are modified, and were intended to provide interim accessibility at lower cost pending full reconstruction.[19] Wellesley Square was one of the first four non-accessible stations to be modified with the temporary platforms. As of December 2024, the platforms are expected to open in February 2025.[20]

References

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  1. ^ a b c Roy, John H. Jr. (2007). A Field Guide to Southern New England Railroad Depots and Freight Houses. Branch Line Press. p. 260. ISBN 9780942147087.
  2. ^ Central Transportation Planning Staff (2019). "2018 Commuter Rail Counts". Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority.
  3. ^ Humphrey, Thomas J. & Clark, Norton D. (1985). Boston's Commuter Rail: The First 150 Years. Boston Street Railway Association. pp. 21–25. ISBN 9780685412947.
  4. ^ Karr, Ronald Dale (1995). The Rail Lines of Southern New England. Branch Line Press. pp. 278–283. ISBN 0942147022.
  5. ^ Report of the Directors of the Boston and Worcester Railroad. Boston and Worcester Railroad. June 3, 1844. p. 27.
  6. ^ Report of the Directors of the Boston and Worcester Railroad. Boston and Worcester Railroad. June 2, 1845. p. 10.
  7. ^ Fiske, Joseph E.; Ellen W. Fiske (1917). History of the Town of Wellesley, Massachusetts. Boston, Chicago: The Pilgrim Press. p. 26. OCLC 6541911 – via Internet Archive.
  8. ^ O'Connell, Richard W. (August 18, 1968). "Old railroad depots take on new careers". Boston Globe. p. A-1 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ^ Nationwide Schedules of Intercity Passenger Service. Amtrak. January 16, 1972. pp. 48, 49 – via Museum of Railway Timetables.
  10. ^ "Not a tear was shed for the 'Bay State'". The Boston Globe. March 1, 1975. pp. 1, 4 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ^ Sanders, Craig (2006). Amtrak in the Heartland. Bloomington, Indiana: Indiana University Press. p. 35. ISBN 978-0-253-34705-3.
  12. ^ All-America Schedules. Amtrak. November 30, 1975. p. 34 – via Museum of Railway Timetables.
  13. ^ MBTA System Route Map (Map). Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. 1977 – via Wikimedia Commons.
  14. ^ MBTA System Route Map (Map). Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. 1978 – via Wikimedia Commons.
  15. ^ "Amtrk Will Celebrate Return of Inland Route". The Republican. October 17, 1984. p. 10 – via Newspapers.com.
  16. ^ Warner, David C.; Goldberg, Bruce (2021). Fifty Years of Amtrak Trains: A Comprehensive Survey of Amtrak Routes: 1971–2021. Bucklin, Missouri: White River Productions. p. 249. ISBN 978-1-932804-70-6.
  17. ^ "Preview of 2019 Recommendations: Presentation to the FMCB" (PDF). Plan for Accessible Transit Infrastructure (PATI). Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. April 1, 2019. p. 12.
  18. ^ Kelly, Maribel (June 21, 2021). "MBTA Contract No. C72PS01: Worcester Line Track and Stations Accessibility Improvements (P0261) Design and Engineering Services" (PDF). Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority.
  19. ^ "Accelerating Accessibility within the Commuter Rail: Freestanding Mini-high Platform Initiative" (PDF). Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. May 23, 2024.
  20. ^ "Accessibility Initiatives—December 2024" (PDF). Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. December 6, 2024. p. 8.
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Media related to Wellesley Square station at Wikimedia Commons

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