Union Square station (MBTA Green Line "E" Branch)

UNION
A commuter rail train passes the Union Square station site in 2015
Location Union Square
Somerville, Massachusetts
Coordinates 42°22′37.72″N 71°5′39.45″W / 42.3771444°N 71.0942917°W / 42.3771444; -71.0942917Coordinates: 42°22′37.72″N 71°5′39.45″W / 42.3771444°N 71.0942917°W / 42.3771444; -71.0942917
Owned by MBTA
Line(s)
  Green Line – "E" Branch
Platforms 1 island platform (Green Line)
Tracks 2 (Green Line)
2 (Fitchburg Line)
Construction
Platform levels 2
Bicycle facilities "Pedal and Park" bicycle cage[1]
Disabled access Yes
History
Opening 2021 (planned)[2]
Services
Preceding station   MBTA   Following station
toward Heath Street
Green Line
Starting 2021
Terminus

Union Square is a planned rapid transit station on the MBTA Green Line "E" Branch in the Union Square district of southeastern Somerville, Massachusetts.[3][4] Union Square will have one island platform which will serve the "E" Branch's two tracks.[1]

In September 2013, the state secured funding to move forward on the Green Line Extension to build three new stations by 2017, signing a 51-month $393 million contract. Construction began in 2014 for Union Square, as well as Washington Street and the relocated Lechmere. After contract cancellations and delays, the station is expected to open in 2021.

History

Green Line Extension

Planned station site in December 2011 before clearing

In August 2012, the City of Somerville, MassDOT, and the MBTA reached a memorandum of agreement about the station. Through the Somerville Redevelopment Authority, the City will acquire $8 million worth of land for the station and grant the MBTA a permanent easement, while retaining the rights for transit-oriented development overhead. In return, the MBTA and MassDOT will pay for cleanup costs at the site, begin construction by the spring of 2014, and open the station no later than "late 2016-early 2017".[5]

In October 2012, the Somerville Board of Aldermen approved the Union Square Redevelopment Plan and authorized an $8 million bond, including $6 million to purchase the land and $2 million for cleanup and station planning.[6] In May 2013, the Board of Aldermen announced that the North Prospect block - a mostly industrial area bordered by the railroad tracks, Prospect Street, Somerville Avenue, and the rear of residential properties on Allen Street - had been acquired by the city via eminent domain for $4.5 million. The properties were to be vacated by August. The city also received a $1 million EPA grant to clean up one of the properties.[7] Site cleanup began in September 2014.[8]

After major cost increases due to contractors increasing costs above estimates became public in 2015, MassDOT cancelled contracts and scaled back sections of the project. A new design released in May 2016 removed direct access from the Prospect Street overpass (which required elevators, escalators, and stairs) and platform canopies.[9] In December 2016, the MBTA announced a new planned opening date of 2021 for the extension.[2]

Commuter rail

Extant steps leading to the long-gone commuter rail station

Union Square was formerly a commuter rail stop on the Fitchburg Railroad (now the Fitchburg Line). Service to the station ended in 1938, likely in concert with the end of passenger service on the Watertown Branch.[10] A set of steps which led to the station is still extant next to Webster Avenue.

Restoring commuter rail service to Union Square has been considered; the 2004 state Program for Mass Transportation estimated such a station would attract 390 daily riders.[10] A Union Square commuter rail station was listed as a possibility in 2012 as an interim air quality mitigation measure in response to delays in building the Green Line Extension.[11] However, such a station would not be popular with riders from the rest of the Fitchburg Line, which is already slow due to closely spaced stations. The station could also not have been completed by the 2015 deadline, and was not supported by MassDOT.[11]

References

  1. 1 2 "Washington Street and Union Square Stations: November 6, 2014" (PDF). Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. 6 November 2014. Retrieved 5 July 2015.
  2. 1 2 Dungca, Nicole (December 7, 2016). "New Green Line stations are delayed until 2021". Boston Globe. Retrieved 7 December 2016.
  3. ↑ "MBTA Light Rail Transit System OPERATIONS AND MAINTENANCE PLAN" (PDF). Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. 6 January 2011. Retrieved 10 August 2015.
  4. ↑ "Travel Forecasts: Systemwide Stats and SUMMIT Results" (PDF). Green Line Extension Project: FY 2012 New Starts Submittal. Massachusetts Department of Transportation. January 2012. Retrieved 10 August 2015.
  5. ↑ Orchard, Chris (3 August 2012). "Agreement Says Union Square Green Line Station Operational by 2017". Somerville Patch. Archived from the original on 19 June 2013. Retrieved 4 August 2012.
  6. ↑ Orchard, Chris (12 October 2012). "Aldermen Authorize $8 Million Bond for Union Square Green Line Site". Somerville Patch. Archived from the original on 31 January 2013. Retrieved 21 October 2012.
  7. ↑ Gallant, Leah (7 June 2013). "Somerville board acquires land for Green Line Extension". Wicked Local Somerville. Retrieved 7 June 2013.
  8. ↑ Maher, Amanda (26 September 2014). "UNION SQUARE GREEN LINE STATION SITE WORK BEGINS" (Press release). City of Somerville. Retrieved 7 October 2015.
  9. ↑ "Green Line Extension Review Interim Project Management Team: Final Report" (PDF). Massachusetts Department of Transportation. May 9, 2016.
  10. 1 2 Central Transportation Planning Staff (January 2004). "Chapter 5C: Service Expansion" (PDF). 2004 Program for Mass Transportation. Boston Metropolitan Planning Organization. Archived from the original (PDF) on 16 February 2008. Retrieved 5 December 2012.
  11. 1 2 Central Transportation Planning Staff (23 January 2012). "Green Line Extension SIP Mitigation Inventory" (PDF). Massachusetts Department of Transportation. Retrieved 5 December 2012.
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