West Newton station is an MBTA Commuter Rail station in

Newton, Massachusetts Newton is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States. It is approximately west of downtown Boston. Newton resembles a patchwork of thirteen villages, without a city center. According to the 2020 U.S. Census, the population of Ne ...

. It serves the

Framingham/Worcester Line The Framingham/Worcester Line of the MBTA Commuter Rail system runs west from Boston, Massachusetts to Worcester, Massachusetts through the MetroWest region, serving 17 station stops in Boston, Newton, Wellesley, Natick, Framingham, Ashlan ...

, and is located inside the

Massachusetts Turnpike The Massachusetts Turnpike (colloquially "Mass Pike" or "the Pike") is a toll highway in the US state of Massachusetts that is maintained by the Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT). The turnpike begins at the New York state li ...

Exit 16 rotary in the village of West Newton. West Newton has had continuous rail service since 1834. The station consists of a single low

side platform A side platform (also known as a marginal platform or a single-face platform) is a platform positioned to the side of one or more railway tracks or guideways at a railway station, tram stop, or transitway. A station having dual side platform ...

serving one of the line's two tracks, with small crossings to access trains on the far track. West Newton is not

accessible Accessibility is the design of products, devices, services, vehicles, or environments so as to be usable by people with disabilities. The concept of accessible design and practice of accessible development ensures both "direct access" (i. ...

; a renovation for accessibility is planned.

History

Train and stagecoach at West Newton, circa 1834

West Newton was the first terminus of the

Boston and Worcester Railroad The Boston and Albany Railroad was a railroad connecting Boston, Massachusetts to Albany, New York, later becoming part of the New York Central Railroad system, Conrail, and CSX Transportation. The line is currently used by CSX for freight. P ...

in April 1834, and one of the first locations in the world from which workers could commute to a city by rail for regular working hours. The

Railroad Hotel The Railroad Hotel (Seth Davis Tavern) is a building that served as an historic hotel at the triangular lot where Washington Street joins Watertown Street ( Route 16) in the West Newton section of Newton, Massachusetts. Built in 1831, it is the o ...

originally served as the train station. By the late 1840s, a dedicated station building was located on the north side of the tracks just west of Chestnut Street. By the 1870s, West Newton was a

flag stop In public transport, a request stop, flag stop, or whistle stop is a stop or station at which buses or trains, respectively, stop only on request; that is, only if there are passengers or freight to be picked up or dropped off. In this way, s ...

, with a larger station building on the south side of the tracks. Service to West Newton and Auburndale stations was reduced to one daily round trip on January 30, 1981, as part of a series of service cuts due to a budget crisis. Normal service resumed to the two stations on March 16, 1981. A 2011 village plan prepared for the city by MIT proposed a four-story development integrated with a rebuilt commuter rail station, with two high-level side platforms providing accessible boarding on both tracks. Design for an accessible platform on the north side of the tracks reached 30% in November 2020 and was expected to be complete in spring 2022. The designs were later changed to have two platforms to reduce operational impacts. The new design reached 30% completion in early 2022. A ramp was added to the design scope at that time, delaying expected design completion to February 2024. Drilling for geotechnical surveying took place in October–November 2022.

Bus connections

West Newton is served by one local MBTA bus route and two express routes with a stop on Washington Street at Elm Street: *: Waltham Center– *: Roberts–Federal Street & Franklin Street *: Waverly Square–Federal Street & Franklin Street An additional express bus route stops on Washington Street at Prospect Street: *: Waltham Center–Federal Street & Franklin Street

References

External links

MBTA – West Newton

Washington Street (east) entrance from Google Maps Street View

Washington Street (west) entrance from Google Maps Street View
Former Boston and Albany Railroad stations MBTA Commuter Rail stations in Middlesex County, Massachusetts {{Massachusetts-railstation-stub