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MBTA to close subway headhouse at North Station in January
By dmk on Sat, 11/28/2015 - 5:11pm
Passengers of the Green and Orange Line's "super station" at North Station have an underground walkway that exits immediately adjacent to the TD North Garden and the North Station commuter rail concourse. People are only exposed to the elements for about 50 feet or so when making this transition.
However the MBTA has quietly announced that this portal which runs under Causeway Street is closing on January 2 to accommodate construction of the new development next to TD North which is now a parking lot, and the former footprint of the original Boston Garden.
When this portal is closed the thousands of people that currently use it, and this includes MBTA commuter rail users, the local workforce, and people headed to TD North for sports events, will be required - indeed forced - to exit the alternate entrance across Causeway Street, and then cross busy Causeway Street to reach TD North and commuter rail options.
The current underground walkway and escalator/elevator option will be rebuilt as a part of the development process and create a new direct entrance to the North Station/TD North concourse. However, this closure and rebuild will take THREE YEARS.
So get used to the weather and crossing Causeway Street.
Read here about halfway down the page.
http://www.mbta.com/rider_tools/transit_updates/?ttype=subway&advistory=...
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Comments
Think of the foot traffic
Think of the foot traffic crossing the street! It's already nuts during Garden events!!
And the plan is...
Will the crossing be upgraded to safely handle the additional pedestrians? Traffic cops? Or is it just "They'll figure it out."
The tunnel is only about 10 years old
Its going to be out of commission for 3 years.
Its just going back to the way it was for a while.
Old Green Line Entrance Was On The North Side Of Causeway Street
... and there was a partially covered, pedestrian overpass to the Orange Line.
Wow. Thats a blast from the past
I lost count of the times I was stuck on that green monster to the left.
I can honestly say I never used this method to cross the street. That whole elevated structure never seemed safe or secure. The street was the preferred method.
Glad its gone.
Where did you get that
Where did you get that picture? I'd love to see more images of the North Station area from right before they tore down the elevated train.
Another View You'll Never See Again
On October 6th, 2002, before the Zakim bridge opened to motor vehicles, there was a special event where it was open to pedestrians. Here are a couple of albums on Flickr of pictures I took that day, of the Big Dig construction and the old elevated Green Line station:
Lets not go back
When they were building the new apartment complex on the South side of the Garden they managed to put up struts so that the far exit to the Garden stayed opened for those walking towards the parking lot and esplanade.
Why can't they do the same thing for much of the construction of the new building? At least this would make it so that people wouldn't need to walk a block in the elements and across a major street for three years just to stay in the same T station. (I'd hate to think about how confusing it is already to explain to visitors that "North Station" is actually two entirely different, non-connected stations.)
Hilton's Tent City!
Think of the extra business they will get from all these folks!
will this require additional
will this require additional detail cops texting on their phones and looking the other way? is the sidewalk between north station and causeway street bpd or msp jurisdiction?
Wow. Talk about motor
Wow. Talk about motor vehicle and pedestrian traffic congestion!
You really have to wonder
About who approves this BS. I didn't even grow up where they have noticeable seasons but learned to take weather patterns into account pretty damn quickly after moving up here. By law, legislators should have to take public transit everywhere on commute and business--not just when "feasible" but all the damn time they aren't working.
Inexcusable It Wasn't Connected To North Station When Built
because
Because Delaware North owns the building and the empty lot, not the MBTA. MBTA is at the mercy of what Delaware North wants. (Unlike South Station which is 100% owned by the MBTA) Which is why the T had to work with Delaware North when they 'expanded' North Station a few years back (the CR station).
Plus Delaware North knew the day the old garden was knocked down something would go here. It's been in different planning ideas for years. Now one has come to fruition. The current headhouse on that side of the street was never meant to be permanent at all, it was eventually meant to be torn down once they figured out what was going to be built here. And that's probably why it was never connected to the main building, as it was assumed that some indoor concourse (inside the new building) would connect it to the TD Garden. It just too damn long to get a project going.
north station
was originally going to be "expanded" into the building going up in the parking lot. that got so delayed so much, that they finally went in the other direction.
That Might Be An Explanation, But It's Still No Excuse
No one needed to figure out that passengers connecting between the Commuter Rail and the Subway would need a walkway between the two stations.
It's a manifestation of the Ⓣ's design philosophy of making their stations isolated outposts, rather than having weatherized connections to adjacent buildings. Passenger convenience has minimal priority.
It's also an example of a lack of leadership at the Ⓣ and other state offices — they could have done what it took to negotiate with the involved parties, such that some connection was made directly into the building. Instead of doing it right, millions of dollars have been wasted, and years of passenger inconvenience will now ensue.
I'm sorry
I'm sorry I see that as a viable excuse. Again Delaware North owns the lot and the building. If THEY don't want to connect to the T until the rest of their building is built, I can't seem to fault the T on this one. It's Delaware North's lot and building, not the T's. Their right to do what they please (and do not please)
Yes they did. The T did their part. They built the pedestrian tunnel under Canal Street, and built a temporary headhouse. Delaware North was suppose to finish the rest when the high rise was built, but it was never built.
How can you build a walkway connecting to the TD Garden when you don't know what's going to be built yet? Hard to do so. Even still even if they did build it and had to re-configure it later once the highrise was built, people would still call it a 'waste of money' regardless.
Again see above. How do you know this wasn't done? they did build the underpass, right? This says they have intentions of connecting the two stations. It was up to Delaware North and not the state to build the final segment (between the temporary headhouse and the TD Garden). which was never built. So how is this the T's fault? it's not.
You're trying to blame T, and it's not going to work in this instance. Your frustration should be directed at Delaware North for not getting their shit together and building on this lot, which should have done decades ago that would completed the walkway from the subway station to the CR station.
Or at a bare minimum, Delaware North, not the T, should have ponied up the money to build a temporary passageway to connect the two stations together. And yes DN should have paid, since they are reason why the lot was empty for so long. Why should my tax dollars pay to build a structure on private property when the developer promised it would take care of that, only to have it torn down years later when the developer finally gets their sh*t together?
Seeing Things Happen— Or Not Happen— Over The Course Of Decades…
… I guess you and I view the world differently sometimes.
In fairness
The underpass opened about 2007.
2008 happened and put a stop to virtually all construction in the city for a few years.
Filene's pit anyone?
thank you
I was thinking about this also after I posted the above. That lot was one of the shelved construction projects due to the recession.
The T needed to get
The T needed to get guarantees during the permitting stage for the new Garden. The new garden was built on their land (Jacobs bought out the T 2 years ago). The arena wouldn't have gotten done if the T didn't agree to the sale and the conditions thereof. Jacobs said he would build, but then just dropped the ball. In the World of Grown Ups the T should have gotten guarantees that access would be provided one way or the other.
So eminent domain
It's a massive public benefit. The MBTA should have used eminent domain (for the land itself or an easement) in order to ensure the ability to have a weather-protected connection.
The T should have told Delaware North to pound sand. Heck -- they should just do it now.
MBTA owned current site of Garden
The T had plenty of leverage to get it done right. This building was supposed to be built in the early 90s, with a grand entrance through the front and access to the T. Jacobs got cold feet and did nothing for 20+ years and we've been entering those dumb side doors. The T could have sought guarantees at the start but had the rug pulled on them.
North Station soaking!
The MBTA sold the underground parking lot and the first floor of the Garden which was funded by taxpayers and riders to the Jacob Brothers at bargain rates, so why should the Brothers Jacob care if riders get soaked again.
Elevator/Escalator Access?
The headhouse that's about to be closed also includes elevators and escalators. Maybe I'm wrong, but I've never found any escalators or elevators on the opposite side of the street. For those times when I wanted to exit on the south side of the street, because my ultimate destination was on that side, it's always been a long climb up lots of stairs.
So are we losing disability access when this headhouse closes?
Good question
I've never gone out this alternate entrance on Haverhill St. However I do know the other end on Valenti Way is HP accessible. I have used that one.
Will have to check that out.
No
from the T's website:
The T published an alert,
The T published an alert, which meant everyone signed up for alerts got an email.
How else should they have publicized it?
Despite what companies
like Verizon would have us believe, not everyone has a smartphone. And despite what the MBTA would have us believe, not everyone who has a smartphone receives T alerts.
And given the fact that this change affects more than daily 9 to 5 commuters, the T has an obilgation to publicize this as much as possible. If they can put up notices in stations that announce the pending re-opening (if you consider Spring 2016 as pending) of Government Center station in October, is it really too much to ask they actually inform people of a fairly signficant change to station access in a similar manner.
You don't need a smart phone for e-mail
Just access to a computer.
You're welcome.
It's probably hard
for you to grasp this concept, but many people still don't have easy access to a computer either.
So how do you suggest the T
So how do you suggest the T publicize this for such people?
To begin
LARGE signs at the entrance that read 'THIS ENTRANCE WILL BE CLOSED AS OF JANUARY 2ND, 2016.
Then issue press releases to the media announcing the closure. And perhaps have the CSAs give handouts to people entering the station at certain times.
Yes, I am aware that the T has recently posted notices at the station. But they look no different than the barrage of service notices for the Orange and Green Line evening and weekend closures for other work. And I wonder how many people still can't figure out what the "North Entrance" is referring to.
Maybe The Ⓣ Doesn't Wish To Draw Publicity To This Inconvenience
Update
As of this morning, I noted that a couple of signs (decals) were posted in North Station subway advising of the impending closure. Of course, if you don't look in the right places, you'll easily miss them.
tunnel closure at north station leading to green/orange line
So, in January, for the MORNING commute, when you get off the commuter rail, you have to exit TD Garden past construction, tromp across Causeway and go about 1 block to Valenti Way (that's where the other subway exit/entrance is). So, hundreds and hundreds of people tromping over there....
What will really be a pain is all the folks who take the orange/green at NIGHT, and currently are able to get to North Station, run like mad upstairs, run 50 ft into the Garden and get to the commuter rail. Now, in January, you have to have everybody navigate ...one exit? or are there two on the green/orange platform to get upstairs to Valenti Way?, and then you'll have to turn around and basically RUN BACK about 1 block (crossing crazy busy Causeway street) and then probably miss your train...
Throw in celtics//concert/circus/ice-show/bruins attendees...and confused tourists...
Idiots who plan stuff in this city.