Sullivan Square (MBTA station)
Encyclopedia
Sullivan Square is a station on the MBTA rapid transit
Orange Line
, and a major bus
transfer point. It was also a major transfer point on the old Charlestown Elevated
, with two streetcar loops (one at elevated level and one at surface level) for free transfers, later converted for trackless trolleys and bus
es.
The first Sullivan Square station was located on the Charlestown Elevated
, which last ran on April 4, 1975. It was replaced with the Haymarket North Extension
which opened April 7, including a new Sullivan Square Station, several blocks west of the old el station.
via Kendall/MIT
Reservoir (Cleveland Circle) via Harvard/Johnston Gate
Clarendon Hill or Davis Sq.
via Broadway Davis Square
- Wellington Station
via Sullivan Square Station & Assembly Mall Central Sq.
, Cambridge via Washington St. Assembly Sq. Mall - Downtown via Sullivan Sq. Sta., Main St. & Haymarket Sta.
Downtown via Bunker Hill St. & Haymarket Sta.
West Medford via Mystic Ave. Malden Center Station
via Salem St., Main St. & Broadway Malden Center Station
via Ferry St. & Broadway Malden Center Station
via Newland St. Housing Linden Square via Glendale Square
system which had just been completed. Surface streetcars ran up to the level of the elevated stations, allowing cross-platform transfer underneath an expansive trainshed.
The station was designed as a major transfer point, with many streetcar lines that had gone downtown truncated to Sullivan. However, the station quickly reached capacity, and an extension to Everett opened on March 15, 1919, with routes through Everett
being moved to the new terminal. However, beginning on March 30, 1963, Everett was closed nights and Sundays, and the truncated routes (now all buses) were extended back to Sullivan Square at those times.
Over time, deferred maintenance on the Sullivan Square station took its toll, and by the time the Charlestown Elevated
came down, the once-magnificent transportation hub was considered by some to be beyond saving. After the current Sullivan Square station was opened as part of the Haymarket North Extension project, there was some discussion of possible re-use of the older structure, but this was preempted by a catastrophic fire of unknown origin, and the original station was demolished shortly thereafter.
. The Urban Ring would be a Bus Rapid Transit
(BRT) Line designed to connect the current MBTA Lines to reduce strain on the downtown stations.
Rapid transit
A rapid transit, underground, subway, elevated railway, metro or metropolitan railway system is an electric passenger railway in an urban area with a high capacity and frequency, and grade separation from other traffic. Rapid transit systems are typically located either in underground tunnels or on...
Orange Line
Orange Line (MBTA)
The Orange Line is one of the four subway lines of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. It extends from Forest Hills in Jamaica Plain, Boston in the south to Oak Grove in Malden, Massachusetts in the north. It meets the Red Line at Downtown Crossing, the Blue Line at State, and the Green...
, and a major bus
Bus
A bus is a road vehicle designed to carry passengers. Buses can have a capacity as high as 300 passengers. The most common type of bus is the single-decker bus, with larger loads carried by double-decker buses and articulated buses, and smaller loads carried by midibuses and minibuses; coaches are...
transfer point. It was also a major transfer point on the old Charlestown Elevated
Charlestown Elevated
The Charlestown Elevated was a former link of Boston's Orange Line rapid transit line that ran from a portal at North Station, near the old Boston Garden, to the city of Everett, Massachusetts...
, with two streetcar loops (one at elevated level and one at surface level) for free transfers, later converted for trackless trolleys and bus
Bus
A bus is a road vehicle designed to carry passengers. Buses can have a capacity as high as 300 passengers. The most common type of bus is the single-decker bus, with larger loads carried by double-decker buses and articulated buses, and smaller loads carried by midibuses and minibuses; coaches are...
es.
The first Sullivan Square station was located on the Charlestown Elevated
Charlestown Elevated
The Charlestown Elevated was a former link of Boston's Orange Line rapid transit line that ran from a portal at North Station, near the old Boston Garden, to the city of Everett, Massachusetts...
, which last ran on April 4, 1975. It was replaced with the Haymarket North Extension
Orange Line (MBTA)
The Orange Line is one of the four subway lines of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. It extends from Forest Hills in Jamaica Plain, Boston in the south to Oak Grove in Malden, Massachusetts in the north. It meets the Red Line at Downtown Crossing, the Blue Line at State, and the Green...
which opened April 7, including a new Sullivan Square Station, several blocks west of the old el station.
Bus connections
Ruggles StationRuggles (MBTA station)
Ruggles Station is a MBTA subway station on the Orange Line; it is also a MBTA commuter rail station serving the Providence/Stoughton, Franklin, and Needham Lines. It is located at the intersection of Ruggles and Tremont Streets, where the Roxbury neighborhood begins and borders with the nearby...
via Kendall/MIT
Kendall/MIT (MBTA station)
Kendall/MIT is a station on the rapid transit Red Line in Kendall Square at the intersection of Broadway and Main Street, in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Trains emerge from the Red Line tunnel just east of the station to cross the Charles River via the Longfellow Bridge...
Reservoir (Cleveland Circle) via Harvard/Johnston Gate
Harvard (MBTA station)
Harvard is a station on the Red Line of the MBTA subway system in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The third-busiest MBTA subway station, Harvard saw 21,868 entries each weekday in 2010, with only Downtown Crossing and South Station being busier...
Clarendon Hill or Davis Sq.
Davis (MBTA station)
Davis Station is located at the intersection of Holland Street, Elm Street, and College Avenue , in Somerville, Massachusetts. It opened on December 8, 1984. Davis Station is named after the Davis family of Massachusetts, a political dynasty whose members, over 220 years, have held at least...
via Broadway Davis Square
Davis (MBTA station)
Davis Station is located at the intersection of Holland Street, Elm Street, and College Avenue , in Somerville, Massachusetts. It opened on December 8, 1984. Davis Station is named after the Davis family of Massachusetts, a political dynasty whose members, over 220 years, have held at least...
- Wellington Station
Wellington (MBTA station)
Wellington is a MBTA station on the Orange Line, located in Medford, Massachusetts, USA on the Revere Beach Parkway slightly east of its intersection with Route 28....
via Sullivan Square Station & Assembly Mall Central Sq.
Central (MBTA station)
Central is an MBTA Red Line subway station located at the intersection of Massachusetts Avenue and Western Avenue, Prospect Street, and Magazine Street at Central Square, in Cambridge, Massachusetts...
, Cambridge via Washington St. Assembly Sq. Mall - Downtown via Sullivan Sq. Sta., Main St. & Haymarket Sta.
Haymarket (MBTA station)
Haymarket is a MBTA station on the Green and Orange lines, located at the corner of Congress and New Sudbury Street. Transfer between the Green and Orange Lines is possible here, although the adjacent North Station may be more convenient for some cross-platform transfers.Originally, the Orange...
Downtown via Bunker Hill St. & Haymarket Sta.
Haymarket (MBTA station)
Haymarket is a MBTA station on the Green and Orange lines, located at the corner of Congress and New Sudbury Street. Transfer between the Green and Orange Lines is possible here, although the adjacent North Station may be more convenient for some cross-platform transfers.Originally, the Orange...
West Medford via Mystic Ave. Malden Center Station
Malden Center (MBTA station)
Malden Center Station is an MBTA station on the Orange Line and Haverhill Line, located on Pleasant Street in downtown Malden, Massachusetts. It is an elevated station serving Malden's Edgeworth and downtown areas, with a small parking lot and connections to several bus lines...
via Salem St., Main St. & Broadway Malden Center Station
Malden Center (MBTA station)
Malden Center Station is an MBTA station on the Orange Line and Haverhill Line, located on Pleasant Street in downtown Malden, Massachusetts. It is an elevated station serving Malden's Edgeworth and downtown areas, with a small parking lot and connections to several bus lines...
via Ferry St. & Broadway Malden Center Station
Malden Center (MBTA station)
Malden Center Station is an MBTA station on the Orange Line and Haverhill Line, located on Pleasant Street in downtown Malden, Massachusetts. It is an elevated station serving Malden's Edgeworth and downtown areas, with a small parking lot and connections to several bus lines...
via Newland St. Housing Linden Square via Glendale Square
- Manchester Shuttle Manchester-Boston Regional AirportManchester-Boston Regional AirportManchester-Boston Regional Airport , commonly referred to simply as "Manchester Airport," is a public airport located three miles south of the central business district of Manchester, New Hampshire on the county line of Hillsborough and Rockingham counties...
via Anderson Regional Transportation CenterAnderson Regional Transportation CenterAnderson Regional Transportation Center is a train and bus station located at 100 Atlantic Ave., off Commerce Way in Woburn, Massachusetts, a suburb of Boston. It can be accessed from Exit 37C off Interstate 93 or the Washington Street exit off Interstate 95/Route 128. It opened on April 28, 2001,...
Predecessor
The original elevated station, which opened on June 10, 1901, was considered the crown jewel of the Boston Elevated RailwayBoston Elevated Railway
The Boston Elevated Railway was a precursor first to the Metropolitan Transit Authority in Massachusetts, now the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, operating rapid transit, streetcars and buses in the Boston, Massachusetts area. It was formerly known as the West End Street Railway.The...
system which had just been completed. Surface streetcars ran up to the level of the elevated stations, allowing cross-platform transfer underneath an expansive trainshed.
The station was designed as a major transfer point, with many streetcar lines that had gone downtown truncated to Sullivan. However, the station quickly reached capacity, and an extension to Everett opened on March 15, 1919, with routes through Everett
Everett, Massachusetts
Everett is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, near Boston. The population was 41,667 at the 2010 census.Everett is the last city in the United States with a bicameral legislature, which is composed of a seven-member Board of Aldermen and an 18-member Common Council...
being moved to the new terminal. However, beginning on March 30, 1963, Everett was closed nights and Sundays, and the truncated routes (now all buses) were extended back to Sullivan Square at those times.
Over time, deferred maintenance on the Sullivan Square station took its toll, and by the time the Charlestown Elevated
Charlestown Elevated
The Charlestown Elevated was a former link of Boston's Orange Line rapid transit line that ran from a portal at North Station, near the old Boston Garden, to the city of Everett, Massachusetts...
came down, the once-magnificent transportation hub was considered by some to be beyond saving. After the current Sullivan Square station was opened as part of the Haymarket North Extension project, there was some discussion of possible re-use of the older structure, but this was preempted by a catastrophic fire of unknown origin, and the original station was demolished shortly thereafter.
Future plans
Sullivan Square Station is a proposed stop on the MBTA's planned Urban Ring ProjectUrban Ring Project (MBTA)
The Urban Ring is a project of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority and the Massachusetts Department of Transportation, to develop new public transportation line that would provide improved circumferential connections among many existing transit lines that project radially from downtown...
. The Urban Ring would be a Bus Rapid Transit
Bus rapid transit
Bus rapid transit is a term applied to a variety of public transportation systems using buses to provide faster, more efficient service than an ordinary bus line. Often this is achieved by making improvements to existing infrastructure, vehicles and scheduling...
(BRT) Line designed to connect the current MBTA Lines to reduce strain on the downtown stations.