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80-559: During planning of the Tremont Street subway in the 1890s, various configurations were considered for the north end of the tunnel. All designs included an incline to the surface to serve streetcars from Charlestown and Cambridge, plus a surface or underground terminal for streetcars from the tunnel. (The blocks between these streets had formerly been occupied by the tracks leading to the Boston and Maine Railroad 's Haymarket Square terminal, which

160-523: A National Historic Landmark in recognition for its pioneering role in the development of the subway as a public transit system in the United States. The landmark designation encompasses the still-extant portions of the early tunnel, roughly from Court Street to Charles Street, and includes the original Classical Revival head houses of the Park and Boylston stations which are still in use. The original owner of

240-775: A request for proposals in December 2019, with notice to proceed expected to be given in 2021. In June 2021, the MBTA indicated that the initial order would be for 102 LRVs operating as single cars, with two-car trains deferred for a later project with federal funding. Manufacturer bids were due in July 2021. The MBTA awarded a $ 811 million contract to CAF USA on August 31, 2022, to manufacture 102 seven-segment Type 10 "Supercar" LRVs. Four pilot vehicles are to be delivered in spring 2026, with deliveries of two LRVs per month from spring 2027 to spring 2031. The contract included options for additional LRVs. As

320-528: A Type 5 A-1 car built in 1924 and retired in 1959, is owned by the Seashore Trolley Museum , but resides semipermanently in Boston. PCC #3295, built in 1951 and retired in 1986, is owned by the MBTA. The cars were formerly used for fantrips , the most recent one being in 1998. In the early 1970s, light rail —which had largely disappeared from North America after the slow decline of streetcar systems from

400-456: A converted commuter rail line in 1959. The Green Line Extension project extended two branches into Somerville and Medford  in 2022. The Green Line's core is the central subway , a group of tunnels which run through downtown Boston. The Tremont Street subway runs roughly north–south through downtown, with stations at Boylston , Park Street , Government Center , Haymarket , and North Station – all with connections to other lines of

480-825: A new tunnel under the Boston Garden , which consolidated the Orange Line and Green Line at a new North Station "superstation", while continuing to connect to Commuter Rail service north of Boston. The name "Green Line" was assigned in 1967 as part of a major reorganization of the MBTA system's branding. In the 1970s, the Green Line and all other MBTA lines were re-evaluated by the Boston Transportation Planning Review for region-wide efficacy and future modernization alternatives initiated as far as physical plant and operating measures. As of February 2023 , each of

560-486: A possibility of future re-use (see above). The subway uses trolleys powered by electricity from overhead lines , which had been made possible by the invention of the trolley pole in 1880 by Frank J. Sprague , from his design for the Richmond Union Passenger Railway . The line has been pantograph -only since the trolley wires were modified in the 1990s. The Tremont Street subway was designated

640-711: A separately-funded project, Lake Street Yard will be fully reconstructed to support Type 10 vehicles, with Riverside Yard and the GLX Vehicle Maintenance Facility also modified. When the Type 10 cars are delivered, the Type 9 fleet is expected to be transferred over to the Ashmont–Mattapan High-Speed Line , replacing the PCC streetcars . The Red Line , Blue Line , and Orange Line run rapid transit cars and use stations with high platforms level with

720-791: A temporary elevated structure was built over Haverhill Street. Service over this structure ended on June 25, 2004; service to the new underground North Station "superstation" began on June 28. A new incline at Martha Road some 1,600 feet (490 m) to the northwest, which connects the extended tunnel to the Lechmere Viaduct, opened on November 12, 2005. The former Canal Street incline site was soon covered by commercial development. [REDACTED] Media related to Canal Street Incline at Wikimedia Commons 42°21′51″N 71°03′34″W  /  42.364234°N 71.059352°W  / 42.364234; -71.059352 Tremont Street subway The Tremont Street subway in Boston's MBTA subway system

800-567: A true rapid transit line. It now forms the central part of the Green Line , connecting Boylston Street to Park Street and Government Center stations. The tunnel originally served five closely spaced stations: Boylston , Park Street, Scollay Square , Adams Square , and Haymarket , with branches to the Public Garden portal and Pleasant Street incline south of Boylston. Park Street, Scollay Square, and Haymarket stations were altered over

880-494: A wayside Automatic Vehicle Identification (AVI) system that relies on the operator properly entering the destination manually on a roto-wheel in the train cab at the beginning of a run. The line is monitored from the Operations Control Center (OCC). Responsibility for controlling service is shared by the control room and field personnel along the right of way. Track circuit and signal indications are not transmitted to

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960-427: Is funded by MassDOT; it uses existing Automatic Vehicle Identification (AVI) systems plus additional sensors in the tunnels, and GPS receivers on the surface sections. In September 2013, the MBTA announced that "Next Train" signs would be unveiled at Kenmore that month. On October 23, 2014, location tracking data became available for Green Line trains above ground. Arrival predictions for surface stations – including

1040-614: Is regularly used as the downtown terminal for two of the branches: Several other loops and crossovers are not used in regular revenue service, but may be used during construction work or service disruptions, or for non-revenue trains, with some having been regularly used as terminals in the past: The Red, Orange, and Blue lines have block signalling systems that make tracking the location of trains easier. Signs in most station on those lines began to display real-time train information in late 2012 and early 2013, while data feeds have been available for smartphone applications since 2010. However,

1120-489: Is signalled with advisory wayside signals , except on surface portions in street medians or in-street running . Wayside signal territory stretches from Lechmere to the surface portals at Kenmore, and along the entire length of the D–Riverside branch. There are no automatic protection devices , but the cars have track brakes , giving the ability to stop quickly under control of the operator. Interlockings are controlled through

1200-575: Is the oldest subway tunnel in North America and the third-oldest still in use worldwide to exclusively use electric traction (after the City and South London Railway in 1890, and the Budapest Metro's Line 1 in 1896), opening on September 1, 1897. It was originally built, under the supervision of Howard A. Carson as chief engineer, to get streetcar lines off the traffic-clogged streets, instead of as

1280-469: The Boeing-Vertol LRVs ordered in the mid-1970s, when reopening service to Watertown was under consideration. The "A" line tracks remained in non-revenue service to access maintenance facilities at Watertown until 1994. The Pleasant Street portal hosted two services in its final days. The 9 to City Point ended in 1953, and the 43 to Egleston was cut back to Lenox Street in 1956, cut back to

1360-493: The Boston , Massachusetts , metropolitan area. It is the oldest MBTA subway line, and with tunnel sections dating from 1897, the oldest subway in North America . It runs underground through downtown Boston, and on the surface into inner suburbs via six branches on radial boulevards and grade-separated alignments. With an average daily weekday ridership of 101,000 in 2023, it is among the most heavily used light rail systems in

1440-589: The Charles River with an elevated station at Science Park . The elevated Lechmere station is located on the Green Line Extension viaduct, which continues north to a flying junction with two branches: The Green Line A branch was the northernmost of the branches, running from the Blandford Street portal (still used by the B branch), west to Watertown , mostly street-running . The 57 bus replaced

1520-495: The D branch was opened in 1959. The northern portal at Canal Street was replaced in 2004 when the subway was extended beneath North Station to a new portal next to Martha Road. The southern portal at Pleasant Street was abandoned in 1962 following the end of streetcar service through the South End . The portal has since been sealed up and covered by Elliot Norton Park, but the dead-ended tunnel to Boylston survives underground, for

1600-516: The Huntington Avenue subway was opened (with a new portal at Northeastern University ). The portal at Kenmore Square was replaced in 1932 when the subway was extended west beyond the Square, to the existing portals on Commonwealth Avenue (the "B" branch ) and Beacon Street (the "C" branch ), although the top arch of the original portal survives as part of a ventilation shaft. The Fenway portal for

1680-517: The Lechmere transfer station was built. In 1914, the Boylston Street subway opened as a westward extension to just short of Kenmore Square , and in 1933 Kenmore station and short tunnel extensions towards two surface lines were added. In 1941, the Huntington Avenue subway and its two additional underground stations removed the last surface streetcars from downtown Boston. Beginning in the 1930s,

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1760-589: The MBTA subway system. The Boylston Street subway runs roughly east–west through the Back Bay neighborhood, with stations at Arlington , Copley , Hynes Convention Center , and Kenmore ; it connects to the Tremont Street subway at Boylston. The Huntington Avenue subway diverges from the Boylston Street subway at a flat junction west of Copley, running southwest, with stations at Prudential and Symphony . A branch of

1840-592: The Pleasant Street incline . This portal was used by streetcars that went southwest to Egleston via the South End, along Tremont Street ( route 43 ), or southeast to City Point in South Boston via Broadway ( route 9 ). Streetcar service through the southern portal ended in 1962; for the last several months, service consisted of a shuttle between the portal and Boylston station. The tunnel still exists, dead-ended at

1920-423: The Tremont Street subway , the oldest subway tunnel in North America. The Tremont Street subway opened its first section on September 1, 1897, to take streetcars off overcrowded downtown streets; it was extended five times over the next five decades. The streetcar system peaked in size around 1930 and was gradually replaced with trackless trolleys and buses , with cuts as late as 1985. The new D branch opened on

2000-544: The massive surface streetcar system was " bustituted " with buses and trackless trolleys which had lower operating costs and more flexible routes. As the 1950s closed out, the only remaining streetcar lines were the Watertown Line , Commonwealth Avenue Line , Beacon Street Line , Arborway Line , and the Lenox Street Line plus several short turn services. In 1959, the Boston and Albany Railroad 's Highland Branch

2080-675: The 120 Type 7 cars, 103 were overhauled by Alstom in Hornell, New York . The work includes new propulsion systems, climate control systems and interiors as well as exterior work. The pilot car for the program left in October 2012 and was returned in November 2014, with the last car overhauled in April 2019. Twenty-four new Type 9 Green Line cars were delivered between 2017 and 2020. Revenue service began in late 2018 and all 24 cars were planned to enter service by

2160-413: The 1850s, Boston sprouted a large network of horsecar lines, the first public transit in the city. The West End Street Railway was created by the state legislature in 1887 to build a single line, but soon consolidated many of the existing lines into a single privately owned system with consistent fares and route designations. The Allston – Park Square line (which served the general area of the A branch )

2240-574: The 1920s to the 1950s—was reintroduced as a method of urban renewal less expensive than conventional metro systems. In 1971, as part of a program to supply further work to defense contractors as the Vietnam War wound down, the Urban Mass Transit Administration selected Boeing Vertol as systems manager for a project to design a new generic light rail vehicle. The UMTA hoped that this " US Standard Light Rail Vehicle " would jumpstart

2320-502: The Green Line uses modern streetcars (light rail vehicles) as heavy rail stock would be inappropriate for the surface branches with their numerous grade crossings . Rolling stock as of June 2024 : Only MBTA operated vehicles are included here, not cars from the Boston Elevated Railway era. When it opened at the end of the 19th century, the Tremont Street subway was not intended as a full-scale rapid transit line (though it

2400-596: The Green Line were activated at Newton Centre and Newton Highlands on April 24, 2015, followed shortly by other D branch stations. Countdown signs at Kenmore and Hynes were activated in August 2015. Signs at Copley and Arlington plus eastbound-only signs from Boylston through Science Park were activated in October 2015. The final set of signs – those on the westbound platforms of Science Park through Boylston – were activated in January 2016. Because holding and short-turning trains at

2480-505: The MBTA announced that it had entered into a restructuring of the deal, reducing the order to 85 cars (with spare parts to be provided in lieu of the 15 remaining cars), and providing for the remaining payment under the original deal only if the cars met performance requirements. Construction of the last car under the order was completed on December 14, 2006. Ultimately, 10 additional cars would be assembled and delivered in late 2007, with five spare shells retained (95 cars in service). The MBTA

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2560-874: The MBTA purchased LRVs from the Japanese firm Kinki Sharyo . These Type 7 were designed with the best features of the US SLRV, the Canadian LRV, and the PCC cars. A total of 120 Type 7 vehicles were purchased, 100 were delivered between 1986 and 1988, and an additional 20 cars ordered and delivered in 1997. Low-floor LRVs were added starting in 1998, allowing for accessible boarding directly from slightly raised platforms. MBTA ordered 100 of these Type 8 cars from Italian company AnsaldoBreda . The first Type 8s entered revenue service in March 1999, and quickly proved problematic and difficult to maintain:

2640-644: The Muni Metro's Twin Peaks Tunnel , and SEPTA 's subway–surface lines tunnel . The new cars were faster—a top speed of 50 miles per hour (80 km/h) versus the PCC's 36 miles per hour (58 km/h)—and had an articulated middle section for higher capacity. Boeing began construction of 175 cars for the MBTA in May 1973. The first LRVs entered service on the D branch in December 1976 but were immediately beset with problems. Certain cars frequently derailed on tight turns in

2720-461: The Park Street interlocking, at the new North Station interlocking, and at the new Kenmore interlocking, but are not transmitted to OCC. In January 2013, the MBTA announced plans to add full vehicle location tracking on the Green Line for countdown signs and smartphone applications, including using AVI data in the tunnels and GPS receivers on the surface lines. The first real-time data—location data on

2800-518: The Red Line's Mattapan station , with a northern turnaround terminus at Government Center , according to a 2012-dated proposal. The three original tunnel entrances were in the Boston Public Garden , at North Station/Canal Street , and at Pleasant Street. Over time, these portals were replaced and abandoned as the subway was extended. Vestiges of various closed portals are still visible inside

2880-480: The Riverside, Boston College and Lechmere yards. Battery trays, air conditioners—mounted under the cars, continually drawing in dirt and debris from under the car when in the tunnels—and air compressors all suffered numerous failures; the plug-style doors had trouble sealing properly; and traction motors failed sooner than expected. Desperate for reliable rolling stock, in 1977 MBTA launched an overhaul program to extend

2960-653: The Tremont Street subway was the private West End Street Railway , later the Boston Elevated Railway . Public ownership began in 1947 with the Metropolitan Transit Authority, now the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority . Green Line (MBTA)#Public Garden and Boylston Street The Green Line is a semi-metro system (form of light rail ) run by the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) in

3040-467: The Tremont Street subway, disused since 1962, runs south from Boylston to the former Pleasant Street incline . The Green Line has four western surface branches, each with a letter designation: B and C branch service terminates at Government Center, while D and E branch service continues north from downtown Boston. North of North Station , the line inclines up to the Lechmere Viaduct , which crosses

3120-434: The activation of countdown signs along the D branch – and underground tracking and predictions were to be rolled out in two phases by early 2015. In March 2015, the MBTA announced that enough AVI equipment had been installed to allow the release of some underground data by April. Most underground data was live by August, but trains near Park Street and Boylston waited until September. The first predictive countdown signs on

3200-518: The availability of its older PCC cars. A total of 34 cars, primarily out-of-service wrecks and parts cars, were rebuilt to as-new condition. As of 2022 , some of these rebuilt PCC cars still run on the Ashmont–Mattapan High Speed Line . After years of fighting between the MBTA and Boeing-Vertol, both sides reached a settlement in 1979. MBTA was allowed to reject the final 40 SLRVs, and Boeing would return $ 40 million to MBTA for

3280-497: The car floor providing easy access for the disabled. The Green Line originated as a streetcar line , and used a variety of streetcars before converting to light rail vehicles. Originally all the Green Line stations had platforms at track level, and passengers had to ascend several steps up into the vehicles. This limited accessibility for persons with disabilities. To address this issue and comply with changing federal and state laws, additional facilities have been added: Beginning in

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3360-457: The contract in June 2024 citing a lack of progress and an inability by the contractor to complete the project. The agency planned to instead use an off-the-shelf system from a different vendor. Aside from the terminal stations, several locations have turnaround loops or crossover switches where trains can reverse direction for short turns . One of these, where northbound trains can turn southbound,

3440-403: The cost of repairs and modifications to several cars. In the early 1980s, with a final settlement with Boeing in place, MBTA started looking for new equipment to supplement and replace the problematic LRVs. In 1980, the MBTA tested Canadian Light Rail Vehicles for three months to determine whether they could be used on the Green Line. The MBTA ultimately found them unsuitable. Ultimately,

3520-545: The country . The line was assigned the green color in 1967 during a systemwide rebranding because several branches pass through sections of the Emerald Necklace of Boston. The four branches are the remnants of a large streetcar system, which began in 1856 with the Cambridge Horse Railroad and was consolidated into the Boston Elevated Railway several decades later. The branches all travel downtown through

3600-414: The development of transit lines just as the standardized PCC streetcars had done decades prior. Boston (with its older streetcar tunnel systems) and San Francisco (with a new Muni Metro streetcar tunnel being built as part of BART construction) were chosen as the testbeds for this new rolling stock. The vehicle was designed as the largest rolling stock that would fit through the Tremont Street tunnel,

3680-499: The early 1890s, the sheer quantity of streetcars during peak periods was clogging the streets of downtown Boston. The Tremont Street subway, the first passenger subway in North America, was opened in stages in 1897 and 1898, with underground stations at Boylston , Park Street, Scollay Square , Adams Square , and Haymarket . The Main Line Elevated was run through the tunnel from 1901, displacing through-running streetcars, until it

3760-418: The end of the year. The first Type 9 car, #3900, began revenue service on December 21, 2018. Planning for a Type 10 fleet—which would replace all Type 7 and Type 8 cars in the mid-2020s—began in 2018 with plans for a fully low floor fleet. At 113 feet (34 m) long, Type 10 cars would be significantly longer than the existing fleet, and carry twice as many passengers as existing cars. The MBTA released

3840-646: The fall of 2019, although actual acceptance continued through 2021. The Type 9 cars will provide additional rolling stock to allow for Green Line Extension operations, and will not replace any of the existing fleet. The cars were made by CAF USA, Inc. , with the shells and frames made in Spain, and final assembly and testing done at their plant in Elmira, New York . As of March 2017 , the first unit had been expected to enter passenger service in Spring 2018, with all 24 cars in service by

3920-474: The first cars failed every 400 miles (640 km), far short of the 9,000 miles (14,000 km) specified by the MBTA, and were prone to derailment at higher speeds as well as brake problems, echoing the problems with the Boeing stock. In December 2004, the MBTA canceled orders for the cars still to be delivered as part of the authority's nine-year, US$ 225 million deal with Breda. One year later, in December 2005

4000-460: The four branches operate on 7- to 9-minute headways during weekday peak hours, and 8- to 12-minute headways at other times. Vehicle usage ranges from 45 trains (90 cars) to 62 trains (124 cars). Unlike the MBTA's heavy rail subway lines, the Green Line has only limited central control and monitoring. This also means that it has lagged behind the other three rail lines in the availability of countdown signs and "next train" arrival information. The line

4080-477: The interior decor, the headhouses were sharply criticized as "resembling mausoleums" and "pretentiously monumental". Later stations on the East Boston Tunnel and Washington Street Tunnel incorporated this criticism into their more modest headhouses. In 1963, the northern part of the tunnel was extensively altered during the construction of Government Center and a new Boston City Hall on what had been

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4160-660: The last of the Boeing-Vertol cars were retired in March 2007 and all except ten of the cars were scrapped. Of the remaining cars, six were sold to the US Government and are now in Pueblo, Colorado for testing purposes, one was given to the Seashore Trolley Museum , and three were retained by the MBTA for work service. In 2006, as part of a legal settlement , the MBTA committed to always operate at least one low-floor car in each train, with no trains consisting only of Type 7 cars. Of

4240-410: The last older cars. Beginning in 1923, all streetcars on the system were painted orange for maximum visibility in traffic. In 1971, the MBTA began painting Green Line streetcars in a green and white scheme to match the new line name. Two older streetcars are on display on the unused outer inbound track at Boylston station, which formerly carried cars coming from the Pleasant Street portal . Car #5734,

4320-464: The main Green Line's Boylston Street subway tunnel extending west of Boylston station towards Kenmore Square station. The western Public Garden portal was replaced in 1914 with two portals, one in the middle of Boylston Street adjacent to the old portal, and the other at the west end of the Boylston Street subway , just east of Kenmore Square . The Boylston Street portal was sealed in 1941 when

4400-453: The neighborhood of Scollay Square. The northbound tunnel to Haymarket station was rerouted to the west (the southbound tunnel is still original). Scollay Square station was rebuilt as Government Center station, and Adams Square station was closed. Much of the old northbound tunnel was filled in to support the City Hall foundation; another section was turned into a delivery tunnel. Another section

4480-607: The next two decades as transfers were added to the Cambridge–Dorchester subway , East Boston Tunnel , and Main Line Elevated (now part of the Red , Blue , and Orange Lines , respectively). Boylston and Park Street were built with rectangular stone headhouses designed by Edmund M. Wheelwright that did not aesthetically match the Common. Scollay Square and Adams Square had similar baroque headhouses with four-sided clock towers. Unlike

4560-515: The now-buried portal, which has been converted to a public park. However, there have been proposals for the disused tunnel to become part of a new streetcar line that would partly replace access to rapid transit for southern Metro Boston neighborhoods that lost rapid transit service in 1987 with the demolition of the Washington Street Elevated southern section of the Orange Line. This proposed new streetcar service could go as far south as

4640-499: The old Mystic River Bridge to Chelsea was closed to streetcars and the lines were replaced by bus service; the next year the Boston Elevated Railway (BERy) bought the Eastern Mass Chelsea Division and through-routed it with its lines connecting to the East Boston Tunnel at Maverick . Like the three other MBTA subway lines, the line uses standard gauge tracks. However, instead of heavy rail metro rolling stock,

4720-473: The operational personnel sites. In lieu of track circuit indications, the AVI system is displayed in the control room to provide a periodic update to train position wherever AVI detectors exist. The AVI system user interface was solely text based until the current control room was opened, in which a new schematic display based on AVI data was instituted. Track circuit indications are available digitally in signal houses at

4800-483: The portal and its North Station surface station as a terminal. In addition to the lines that later became the E branch, the predecessors to the 58 and 60 split in Brookline , one branch running into the current "E" tracks and into the Boylston Street portal , and the other running up Brookline Street to end at Massachusetts Avenue station. These were truncated in 1932 into a shorter route from Brookline Village to

4880-519: The portal in 1961, and ended operation in 1962. Prior to that, the 48 serviced Tremont Street to Dover Street and Washington Street , ending at Dudley , and last running in 1938. The last two routes to continue beyond the Canal Street portal both ran to Sullivan . The 92 ran via Main Street, last running in 1948, and the 93 via Bunker Hill Street last ran in 1949. Until 1997, trains continued to use

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4960-737: The remaining streetcar services were designated the "Green Line" because several of them traveled near the Emerald Necklace park system. The streetcar lines were given letter designations: "A" to the Watertown Line, "B" to the Commonwealth Avenue Line, "C" to the Beacon Street Line, "D" to the Riverside Line, and "E" to the Arborway Line. The Watertown Line ran mostly in mixed traffic after diverging from Commonwealth Avenue; it

5040-513: The streetcar line in 1969. The A branch diverged from Commonwealth Avenue west of Boston University and ran to a terminus in Watertown , across the Charles River from Watertown Square, until 1969. Although the route-letter scheme had been introduced two years prior to its closure, the "A" designation was never signed on streetcars to Watertown . It was, however, included in the destination signs on

5120-400: The subway via the Boylston Street portal, which itself stopped running in 1938 (being cut back to Brigham Circle short-turn trips), three years before the closure of that portal. The last "foreign" cars to operate in the subway were those of the Eastern Massachusetts Street Railway , running from the Canal Street portal to the Brattle Loop at Scollay Square until 1935. It was then that

5200-407: The surface lines—became available in October 2014. Full tracking was expected by early 2015. The MBTA typically runs two-car trains at all times. The last scheduled use of one-car trains on weekdays was in March 2007. Three-car trains were added on the B and D branches in 2010 – their first use since 2005 – and a four-car train was tested in April 2011. In March 2011, the number of three-car trains

5280-406: The two outer tracks were connected to the newly opened Charlestown Elevated; only the inner tracks carried streetcars. By this time, a pedestrian tunnel crossed under the incline at Traverse Street, which had been severed by its construction. On November 30, 1908, the Washington Street Tunnel opened; it was connected to the Charlestown Elevated using the two eastern tracks of the incline. The incline

5360-399: The wayside signalling system used in the Green Line's tunnels and the D branch does not provide for that level of tracking, nor do the basic stop/go signals used on the street-level branch lines. In January 2013, the MBTA announced plans to provide full tracking data for the Green Line by 2015, allowing use of smartphone applications and in-station countdown signs. The $ 13.4 million system

5440-426: Was 28% complete by December 2021; installation of in-vehicle electronics was scheduled to be complete by September 2023, with wayside installation complete in June 2024 and full operation that December. A reallocation of funds in January 2022 shortened the project timeline, with completion expected in 2023. However, in January 2023, an NTSB report found that the project had been delayed to June 2025. The MBTA cancelled

5520-442: Was built to semi-metro standards), but to allow ordinary streetcars to bypass the worst street congestion in downtown Boston. Operations by several different companies were eventually consolidated into the Boston Elevated Railway, which ran a mixture of car types. After receiving a test unit in 1937, the BERy began to standardize on PCC streetcars , acquiring 320 units between 1941 and 1951 plus an additional 25 in 1959 to phase out

5600-425: Was closed in 1893 by the construction of North Union Station .) The Boston Transit Commission constructed a four-track incline; the inner tracks would lead to the surface, and the outer tracks would serve a planned underground loop station (which was later replaced with a surface terminal). This four-track incline opened on September 3, 1898, as part of the final section of the Tremont Street subway. On June 10, 1901,

5680-414: Was closed on April 4, 1975, and the eastern two tracks of the incline were removed. The Haymarket North Extension , which opened on April 7, included a new tunnel and an underground North Station. The Causeway Street terminal was closed on March 28, 1997, for construction of a new Green Line tunnel. The tracks to the Causeway Street elevated were shifted east onto the 1975-abandoned part of the incline, and

5760-468: Was converted to the Riverside Line , a fully grade-separated suburban service. In 1961, the last through service to Lenox Street via the Pleasant Street portal ended, though a Pleasant Street – Boylston shuttle continued for one more year. In 1963, part of the original subway was rebuilt under Government Center , abandoning and partially demolishing Adams Square station. In 1947, the now-bankrupt BERy

5840-401: Was criticized for their failure to assess Bredas' reliability before entering into the deal, and during delivery. The agency was also forced to spend an additional US$ 9.5 million to modify tracks to prevent derailments and the Type 8 fleet was unable to be used on the D branch (where cars reach full speed) after those modifications were complete in 2008. As the final Type 8s were delivered,

5920-469: Was expanded west for two additional tracks, restoring four-track streetcar operations through the subway. On June 1, 1912, the Causeway Street elevated (which led to the Lechmere Viaduct ) was connected to the outer tracks at the incline. After route 93 was converted to bus on July 1, 1949, the center streetcar tracks were only used by streetcars terminating at North Station. The Charlestown Elevated

6000-468: Was permanently replaced with buses in 1969. The section of the Arborway Line past Heath Street was "temporarily" – ultimately permanently – bustituted in 1985. In 2001, with new low-floor streetcars entering service, the MBTA began retrofitting underground stations and major surface stops with low raised platforms for accessibility for all. In 2004, the Causeway Street Elevated was replaced with

6080-488: Was rediscovered by a City Hall employee in 1983; a 150-foot (46 m) piece was renovated for use as records storage. In 1971, the original Haymarket station was replaced with a new station just to the south. The subway in 1897 consisted of a main line under Tremont Street running to Park Street, where is splits into two forks. One fork connects to the Boylston Street subway , which turns westward under Boylston Street. The other fork continues south under Tremont Street to

6160-410: Was replaced by the public Metropolitan Transit Authority (M.T.A.). The new agency was unpopular, even spawning a popular protest song ; in 1964, it was replaced with the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority which had an expanded funding area to preserve suburban commuter rail lines. In 1967, as part of a systemwide rebranding that included new station names and color names for the transit lines,

6240-629: Was rerouted to its own Washington Street Tunnel in 1908, and the streetcars were returned to the Tremont tunnel. Though initially intended merely to clear streetcars from the busiest sections of downtown streets, the Tremont Street subway became useful as a rapid transit service in its own right. The 1912 completion of the Causeway Street Elevated and Lechmere Viaduct extended grade-separated service to Lechmere Square in Cambridge, and in 1922

6320-426: Was substantially increased, including use on the E branch. However, three-car trains suffered from reliability problems and slow boarding. The use of three-car trains ended in March 2016. The MBTA approved a $ 82.6 million contract in May 2019 for a train protection system for the Green Line. The system would enforce red signals and automatically stop a train if it approached another train too closely. The project

6400-546: Was the first section to be converted to electric traction in 1889. It used modified existing horsecars outfitted with Frank J. Sprague 's revolutionary electrical equipment, which had first been demonstrated the previous year in Richmond, Virginia . In 1897, the West End Street Railway property was handed over to the Boston Elevated Railway in the form of a 24-year lease, and the companies were ultimately combined. By

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