Amtrak traditionally ran one or two New York to Boston trains per day via Springfield, know as the inland route, the last regularly scheduled train (last Sunday for example, Amtrak ran a couple emergency trains via the inland route with the costal route closed due to a derailment near New Haven) ran in 2004. Today there is frequent MBTA Commuter Rail Service (that was recently increased) between Boston and Worcester, a 54 mile gap to Springfield where Amtrak’s Lake Shore Limited is the only option to Springfield with the frequent Northeast Regional Shuttles/Vermonter providing service farther south.
The day began on trolley bus route 71 that I made a point of going down to the lower level of the Harvard bus tunnel to board although on the streets of Cambridge would have been more convenient from my cousin’s house to end this emergency trip to Boston. First I watch two diesel buses discharge passengers on the Then it showed up for me. We all board through the back door and I learn these buses are pay when you get off outbound. We directly follow a route 73 trolley bus making more stops.
This gets me to Watertown at 9:42, plenty of time before my 10:00 trip on route 59. I tap off paying my $1.50 bus fare. The small modern bus loop has a map that doesn’t include Watertown Square but shows service all the way out to Lynn.
The #59 bus I’ve ridden the southern portion of a few times when I’ve stayed in Needham. Another #71 comes in as I debate walking the less than two miles to the Newtonville Commuter Rail Station but the transfer is free. The #59 runs about twice her hour on a wacky schedule. The next one would get me there with only a 8 minutes to spare. At 9:57 my connecting bus comes in for the short ride. The fare box says transfer, $1.50 cost per day.
I get off in Newtonville at 10:06. The Commuter Rail Line here is along the northside of the Mass Pike. The Massachusetts Turnpike Authority bought the tracks and reduced them to 2 from 1962 to 1964. The station is one of the worst platforms alongside the highway I’ve visited although I give it credit for having entrances at both ends of the single platform along the south track with a small board to reach the north track.
I have debated walking to the next stop of West Newton but the sparsity of Newtonville and the cold weather make it clear I’m going to freeze if I don’t. I walk up to West Newton getting there about 10 minutes before my Commuter Train, its equally primitive with a nearly identical design.
The train comes in at 10:52, no one is getting off, I’m the only one boarding. The train has five cars, 4 Multi-Livels and a single-level cab car on the train. Only one Bi-Level is actually open for passenger use on this train. There also seems to be a crew of just one conductor controlling the doors and traps that have to be manually opened. There are no electronically controlled doors on MBTA commuter rail. This is a pity because the newer rail lines have only high platforms and automatic doors work well for these uses. I go find a seat, the last remaining set that seems to be free on the lower level, the conductor comes over to collect my $5 fare for Wooster (a ticket from South Station is $10, my walk saved 50¢ since it is a $5.50 fare from Newtonville) that is extremely cheep on a per mile basis. I get a simple white ticket receipt. No seat checks are used, with one conductor manning the only door I think he can keep track of who boards.
- 10:57 – Auburndale, this is another dumpy station along the Mass Pike, one passenger gets of. We soon leave and go by woods, wrong railing on the left-hand track.
- 10:59 – Over the Route 128 (I-95) inner beltway. We switch onto the correct, right hand track. I think we were just wrong railing for the first three stops since they have single platforms with wooden boards for boarding on the normal outbound track. We pass a frozen lake.
- 11:00 – Reach houses again and pull into Wellesley Farms. The station has two side platforms with an old wooden shelter on the inbound platform. One man has gone to the wrong vestibule, away from the conductor to get off, he runs through the lower-level of the car
- 11:04 – Wellesley Hills, with a nice stone station house. Many more people have gotten off as I go find a seat in the upper level.
- 11:08 – Wellesley Square, MP-15, one passenger boards the train. We leave and go through a forest briefly and then reach houses again going slowly. The speed is a far cry from Acela.
- 11:14 – Natic, a very strange layout for the two side platforms with the inbound platform having a nice wooden canopy at about high level before steps down to a low level platform with modern railings and a concrete wall down to current track level. The reason immediately occurs to me. The rail bed was lowered to allow double stack trains to operate. We have a nice view of some ponds on both sides of the train. Then start passing more houses. The line is grade separated.
- 10:20 – West Natic, a modern station with mini-high platforms, the first wheelchair accessible station of the day, we stop at the mini-high platform that is quite far away from the station’s parking lot. We go back to houses and a snowy stream.
- 11:22 – pass the bus depot of MetroWest Regional Transportation Authority. Then slowly reach a grade crossing along MA-135.
- 11:23 – Framingham, we pass a historic looking station house before pulling up to a modern stations with mini high-level platforms. The Lake Shore also stops here but no signs for Amtrak, except for a labeled Amtrak wheelchair transfer plate on the mini-high platform. The outbound platform is in he middle of a railroad wye. All access is via an overpass complete with an elevator to reach it. We pass an inbound train and a yard. I considered transferring here but the Wooster station sounds much more historic and Framingham is closer to Boston and could be an easy trip if I’m not necessarily planning to board the Lake Shore.
- The line becomes wooded with houses, we regain speed. Pass MP 24. Service between Framingham and Worcester was discontinued from 1975 to 1994 when some service resumed, all the intermediate stops from here are modern and built as infill stations between 2000 and 2002.
- 11:31 – pass a historic depot but no stop. Then a frozen lake.
- 11:32 – Ashland, a modern station with a mini high platform on each track connected by an overpass with ramps up to it from both sides. The ramps actually arrive at the mini-high platforms, a nice touch. There is a half-empty parking lot. Pass MP 26. We go back into the woods with plenty of water, some frozen others not.
- 11:36 – Southboro, more modern mini high platforms, no pedestrian bridge, use street underpass at opposite end of the station full parking lot. We follow a stream and houses.
- 11:40 – back in woods and go under the mass pike and then 495, the outer beltway. Then pass the large Westboro Transfer Terminal for intermodal CSX trains. Then we’re back to trees.
- 11:43 – pass another historic depot fenced off from the tracks, going through a town and get to more industry.
- 11:45 – Westborough, a modern station on a modern parking lot. All access is from outbound platform with an overpass with stars and elevators up to it connecting both platforms. Inbound is complete with concrete sound wall. We get a nice view of a lake and go back to trees. A MBTA locomotive with a single car passes. I assume this is a Deadhead move.
- 11:49 – Grafton, the usual, Modern station, two side platforms. Long ramp up from inbound platforms mini-high to overpass at opposite end of the station. The other ramps are switchbacks.
- We go back to frozen water and trees. There are a few grade crossings. More water on the opposite side of the train as we pass a town. The houses become more numerous, we’re clearly getting somewhere largr. We pass some workers and boxcars at. Industrial siding and go high above more water. About half the car is full. Worcester is a major destination.
- We slow down as we keep going through houses, pass MP42.
- 11:59 – start seeing modern signaling for the first time today and enter an open cut going very slowly
- Noon – pass a large intermodal yard and see the skyline of Worcester. The skyline of Worcester arrives and weekend passing the yard.
- We Arrive Worcester-Union Station at 12:03 to a modern high-level platform outside nice old station.
I get off along with eveyone else and notice that most people are walking down off the high-level platform into the historic Wooster-Union Station. Some are walking down the end of the high-level platform to where it becomes low-level and runs on the northern side of the CSX train yard. I take this route getting tons of photos of this extremely unique platform, and walk through the commuter rail parking lots to local streets. I take local streets back to the depot and have a wonderful time exploring it.
Worcester-Union Station is a restored historic railroad gem. There is a great hall that has an event being set up in it but I can at least walk around the perimeter of the hall with its stained glass ceiling. During my visit they start putting curtains up to keep commuters from witnessing the upcoming even. Going beyond that is another grand room with the Amtrak ticket office (and checked baggage, a single bike box is outside the ticket office on a manually pushed baggage cart) and just an LED sign for MBTA info. I buy a muffin at the extremely cheep but sad looking snack bar for a snack. A spiral staircase leads up to the platform level on the railroad viaduct. I later find a diner outside, perfect if I ever elect to have another layover in Wooster. The security guard even says “You can take as many pictures as you want.” There are outdoor intercity bus bays with a Greyhound/Peter Pan Ticket office and a new Local bus transportation center that is under construction across the street.
I’m so distracted exploring the historic station I forget to go back up to the platform to photograph the 12:20 departure of the next inbound train. I go back up to the one train platform at 12:45 and get some more photos of the elevated junction of two railroads that clearly had more platforms than one at one time. There is no signage for Amtrak on the high-level platform it stops at although the old pointless arrow logo does appear on some of the entrances to the commuter rail parking lot.