Red Line (Braintree branch)
Braintree station
Braintree station is the southern terminus of the Red Line, with a huge parking garage for hundreds of cars (under renovation at the time of these photos). The commuter rail station was added much later — service on the Old Colony was only restored in the late 1990s, two decades later, as a Central Artery/Tunnel Project mitigation measure.
Braintree station
During garage construction, only a temporary walkway connects the commuter-rail station, located to the north, with the Red Line station.
Braintree station
Looking south from the grade crossing south of the commuter-rail station toward the Red Line station (canopy in the distance). I do not know why there is a derail clamped to the freight siding.
Braintree station
Looking north, the freight siding connects to a four-track yard, partially occupied with tank cars.
Braintree station
Looking south again from between the two passenger tracks, a universal crossover in the distance allows trains from either track access to the Kingston and Middleboro branches, which continue as single-track lines to the left and right, respectively. A small yard at right allows a small number of Red Line trains to be stored overnight — original plans for the South Shore Extension called for the Red Line to go as far south as Weymouth.
Braintree station
Video screens provide advertising, public-safety announcements, and schedule information.
Braintree station
North of the platform, the passenger tracks merge down to one, and eventually the freight track merges back in as well. Braintree Junction, about a mile north of here, is a full wye, allowing freight trains from Middleboro to access customers along the Greenbush branch as well as Quincy and Dorchester. Some plans for providing frequent service on the Old Colony call for Greenbush trains to turn south and terminate here, allowing a transfer to the Red Line or to more frequent Middleboro and Kingston trains which would require all slots on the single-track trunk line through Dorchester.
Braintree station
Looking back south along the commuter-rail platform, with the freight yard at left and the Red Line tracks at right
Braintree station
Ongoing construction sat the Braintree parking garage, which includes accessibility improvements.
Braintree station
The Braintree garage project included adding additional elevators and altering the path of travel between the garage and the Red Line station. Most passengers here would be unlikely to pat the $6.50 fare for the commuter rail inbound, a hefty premium over $2.40 for the Red Line, so travelers using the commuter rail station are likely transferring.
Braintree station
Fare collection area of the Red Line station. When this station was originally opened, an exit fare was collected here in addition to the entrance fare; when I first came to Boston the exit fare was one token ($0.85) and the entrance fare was two tokens ($1.70) so regular commuters would have paid $3.40 round trip. A fare system revision in the 1990s eliminated the fare differential across the Red Line.
Braintree station
Stairs and escalator up to the Red Line platform
Braintree station
Looking north from the Red Line platform back over at the commuter-rail station
Braintree station
South of Braintree station is Caddigan Yard, a small overnight-storage yard where sufficient trains can be berthed to allow for service to start up in the morning, due to the poor placement of Cabot Yard, the main Red Line yard and maintenance shops.
Braintree station
Caddigan Yard as seen from the other side of the Braintree platform; high-mast signals protect a crossover on the Old Colony.
Quincy Adams station
Quincy Adams is another station on the Braintree branch of the Red Line with a huge parking garage. The former Lowe's property across the street, used for extra parking capacity at the time of these photos, will be demolished and replaced by a new Quincy bus garage. Quincy Adams is located just north of Braintree Junction, where the Greenbush Line meets the other two Old Colony lines, but does not have a commuter-rail station.
Quincy Adams station
The existing Quincy bus garage is a century-old streetcar barn and woefully inadequate to its current task. The MBTA acquired this property across Burgin Parkway from Quincy Adams station, a former Lowe's, to construct a new $400 million palace of a bus garage, which will ultimately house 120 battery buses.
Quincy Adams station
The T originally acquired the old Lowe's site when it leased the parking lot for extra capacity during the Quincy Adams garage renovation.
Quincy Adams station
If it wasn't obvious enough from the corporate architecture, you can see where the Lowe's sign was. This entire building will be demolished; it's the wrong shape and construction for a bus garage.
Quincy Adams station
Quincy Adams was briefly the terminus o the Red Line, and there's a universal crossover just north of the station platform to allow trains to terminate on either side of the platform. Commuter rail tracks are on the other side o the fence at left.
Quincy Center station
Quincy Center is another station on the Braintree Branch of the Red Line, and a former terminus of the line for a brief period during the extension's construction. It formerly had a large parking garage, but this was demolished a few years ago to make way for a transit-oriented-development project that has yet to come to fruition. It is also a stop on the Old Colony commuter rail. This photo is looking south from the Red Line platform towards the south end of the commuter-rail platform.
Quincy Center station
Access to the commuter-rail platform shares a path of travel with the accessible exit to Burgin Parkway.
Quincy Center station
As the whole Old Colony project postdates the ADA, all of the platforms are accessible. Ahead at right, an elevator connects the ramp to Burgin Parkway with the Old Colony platform below.
Quincy Center station
The commuter-rail platform is very dark, poorly lit, and not especially comfortable for travelers. It reeked of pot smoke when I was taking these pictures.
Quincy Center station
The walls and ceilings are black from diesel smoke
Quincy Center station
Axial vent fans to clear out the diesel smoke as the train rumbles through
Quincy Center station
Stairs up to street level (no idea why this is restricted for emergency use only)
Quincy Center station
Not sure what this odd round concrete structure is, but I believe it was part of the parking garage foundation originally, and was presumably left intact because it houses important equipment.
Quincy Center station
Looking back south at the grim rail tunnel and the remaining level of the parking garage, which survives only because it's also the roof deck of the station. Some day it will presumably be demolished as a part of the TOD construction.
