Lowell Line

The railway Boston Lowell is a railway line in Massachusetts (United States). It is about 42 kilometers long and connects the cities of Boston, Somerville, Medford, Winchester, Woburn, Wilmington, Billerica and Lowell. The standard gauge line is now the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, which operates the passenger. In addition, freight trains of Pan Am Railways, which has a shared right to operate the route. Between Boston and Wilmington, the route also ride the " Downeaster " express trains of Amtrak. The decommissioned in the 1970s end of the track in the center of Lowell is traveling today a museum tram in the Lowell National Historical Park.

History

After putting in Lowell early 19th century, had settled a large number of factories, especially the textile industry, we needed a way to transport goods and raw materials, such as the Middlesex Canal was not dependent on the weather and faster than transport by carts. Already on June 5, 1830, therefore, the Boston and Lowell Railroad was awarded a concession to build and operate a railway line from the port of Boston to Lowell. The railway company was set up formally on 19 March 1831, began shortly after the construction work. On 24 June 1835, the total distance walked in operation. Since you wanted a possible winding and steep poor route, the route led far away from the town centers of the towns along the way on Cambridge, Medford, Woburn, Stoneham and Billerica over. These places had to be tied later by branch lines. Intermediate stations were therefore not initially.

Initially, the route had a granite base, on which the rails were attached. As this led to a substantial cross- instability of the tracks, which is a running speed as they had planned it, not made ​​it possible, after a few years, the entire route was converted to the now customary construction with sleepers. By 1841 they built the track from 1842, the first two tracks and waypoints were introduced. After the main route network in the northeastern United States was largely completed in the 1850s, the route sailed not only suburban trains from Boston, but also many express trains plying from Boston to New Hampshire, Vermont and Canada. Only the terminus in Lowell on the Merrimack Street had only a purely local character, since the laxative north routes already diverged at Middlesex Street and the passing northward trains after the opening of the new station at Middlesex Street no longer at the Merrimack Street held. Ending only in Lowell suburban trains ran until the beginning of the 20th century in the old railway station, which was then converted to the freight depot. Only with the closure of the port connections in the 1970s, this route section in the center of Lowell was shut down. Today the museum tram of the Lowell National Historical Park is traveling on the former railway line. In June 1873, the Boston & Lowell opened a harbor railway in Boston, the south of the breakpoint Prospect Hill teed and east to the docks Mystic Wharf (now Massport ) led. This route is now used only in sections as a siding. The Mystic River Railroad Company had received the concession for this route on May 25, 1853, but did not begin with the construction. The Boston & Lowell bought this company and the concession on 15 December, 1871.

The management of the route was in 1887 on the Boston and Maine Railroad, the Boston & Lowell had leased. From 1955 to 1957, the railway company covered the distance in the city of Winchester higher, replacing some crossings by underpasses. At the same time, the stations Wedgemere and Winchester Center were renewed. 1976 bought the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority ( MBTA ), the route, but first gave the Boston & Maine, the implementation of the suburban. The Boston & Maine received a shared right also to freight, which in 1979 rose sharply after the freight trains were headed toward Fitchburg over Lowell. The freight operates since 1983 the Guilford Transportation, which had taken over the Boston & Maine and operates under the name Pan Am Railways since 2006. Since the Guilford Transportation wanted to operate any passenger, she handed over the management of the suburban trains on the Amtrak. Since 2001 it also operates the Downeaster, which runs through Wilmington to Portland. In 2003, the MBTA itself the implementation of the suburban to Lowell.

Route description

The route begins in 1893 opened Boston North Station. The Boston & Lowell station was located at the western end of the site. The original station building of the route had been until 1878 replaced by a new building, the station was rising in the new reception building complex in the construction of the North. 1928, the entire complex was demolished and built a new reception building. The route leaves the station in a northwesterly direction, crossing first the Charles River. The original route, which was still in use until the late 20th century, branched off here and circumnavigated the goods station Charlestown south. The route then crossed the main road to Fitchburg. Today, the trains go north to the freight station around and over a two-pronged cross connection. Where the two paths meet again, branched off from June 1873 Mystic River Branch, the port rail of Charlestown. The track connection to Lowell track is broken down, the port railway itself, however, still partially in the siding operation. Through the city of Somerville through the route now leads further to the northwest. Persons holding but there is here already since the 1960s are no longer. At the former train station Somerville Junction a link branched off to Cambridge, which was used until 1979 by the freight trains in the direction of Fitchburg.

A few kilometers away, the city Medford is reached, where now the first people stop located along the route. Shortly thereafter, the route to the northeast turns off and goes through Winchester, where to hold the breakpoints Wedgemere and Winchester Center, the suburban trains of the MBTA. At Winchester Center Station, a branch line branched off that led through the center of Woburn and north of the city of Wilmington led back to the main route towards Lowell. Subsequently, the route reaches the junction station of Montvale, where once led away a branch line Stoneham. The station is located while in the city of Woburn, but far away from the center. Here the track bends to Lowell back in the direction from north-west and crosses the North Woburn. In an industrial area, the breakpoint Mishawum is near the same lake. It is operated only during rush hours. The most important route station is reached shortly thereafter, opened the Anderson Regional Transportation Center in April 2001. Stop here next to the MBTA commuter trains and the Amtrak Downeaster trains. Some suburban trains from Boston end here during rush hour.

Immediately after the train crosses the railway line the city limits to Wilmington. At the Wilmington train station chain from 1836 to 1848, the original main line of the Boston & Maine from. After the Boston & Maine had built its own route to Boston, but it was shut down in Wilmington. Until 1874 built the Boston & Lowell own car to the Boston & Maine main line that runs parallel to the old route to Wilmington Junction and also branches in Wilmington train station. The main route to Lowell continues in a northwesterly direction through sparsely populated country and you soon come to Billerica. Here is an important railway workshop, the Billerica shops to teeing a connecting track. Shortly before the North Billerica station opens out the route from the direction of Bedford, which was operated from 1877 to 1878 as a narrow gauge railway in the track width of two feet (610 mm) and was later replaced by a standard gauge track.

Shortly thereafter, the city of Lowell is reached. The route crosses the Concord River at first and then empties into the freight yard bleachery, where the double-track line from Lowell Junction, the disused stretch of Lawrence and the distance of Framingham in the main line open out. The track field of the freight depot flows seamlessly into the passenger station Charles A. Gallagher Transit Terminal, where the suburban trains of the MBTA end. This station was opened in 1983 and replaced the former Middlesex Street Station at almost the same place. The original route to Lowell went on over the Pawtucket Canal and along the Merrimack Canal to the center of the city, where in addition to the old town hall, the terminus Merrimack Street Station was reached immediately. This area is now part of the museum complex of the Lowell National Historical Park. The station area is the Tram Museum.

Passenger

Since time immemorial, the passenger plays an important role on the way to Lowell. 1869 sailed the route two express trains and seven passenger trains to Lowell and partially in the direction of north. These nine trains came to Woburn, which plied to Winchester on the track, and two trains to Stoneham, who used the route from Boston to Montvale. After the opening of the branch line to Wilmington Junction train movements in 1874 were introduced on this route to Lawrence. 1881 left Boston 38 trains running on the route in the direction of Lowell. Of these perverted eleven trains only to Somerville Junction, where they turned toward Arlington, eight trains went to Winchester and on to Woburn, five on Montvale Stoneham, one on Wilmington to Lawrence and seven trains ended up in Lowell. Six trains drove on toward New Hampshire. Sundays only drove three trains to Lowell, one of which further upside to the north.

Shortly thereafter, with the takeover of the railways in New Hampshire mid-1880s, numerous new Expresszugläufe were introduced. 1916 wrong on weekdays and Sundays twelve four express trains to New Hampshire, and three passenger trains arrived daily to New Hampshire, which also did not stop at many stations between Boston and Lowell. In the transport used the distance from Boston, Monday through Friday 56, Saturday 60 and Sunday 14 trains. Only four, five Saturdays, these trains went to Lowell, the other arc in Somerville Junction, Winchester, Wilmington Montvale or on the branch lines from. Most of the local trains which plied to Wilmington and Lowell, drove it over Woburn and not about Montvale.

The train services decreased with the increase in individual and 1960 were on weekdays only five express trains towards New Hampshire, eight trains to Lowell, eight trains to Wilmington and continue towards Haverhill and 22 trains on Winchester to Woburn, a train to Winchester and a train to Wedgemere available. Suburban trains to Haverhill perverted 1959-1979 on the track, then only individual train runs during rush hour. Due to the increasing population of the suburbs of the commuter traffic from Lowell to Boston has become stronger again. The MBTA offers 2010 on weekdays 26 trains on the Lowell Line at, driving four of which only up Anderson / Woburn, all remaining 22 trains terminate in Lowell. In addition, coming over Wilmington run toward Boston during rush five trains of Haverhill. In the opposite direction is on this relation, only one train available. On the weekend go eight trains from Boston to Lowell and back. The Amtrak is running on the route between Boston and Wilmington five times a day on the Downeaster to Portland.

References and further reading

• Ronald D. Karr: The Rail Lines of Southern New England. A Handbook of Railroad History. Branch Line Press, Pepperell, MA 1995. ISBN 0-942147-02-2
• Mike Walker: Comprehensive Railroad Atlas of North America. New England and Maritime Canada. (2nd edition) SPV -Verlag, Dunkirk (GB ), 2010. ISBN 1-874745-12-9

• B & M Corporate History, 1914, page 87-88 (PDF, 6.9 MB) ( English)
• List of stations ( with route miles) and the staff of 1923 ( English)

• 1435 mm
• Railroad track in Massachusetts