West Roxbury station

West Roxbury is an MBTA Commuter Rail station in Boston, Massachusetts. It serves the Needham Line. It is located on an embankment above Lagrange Street in the West Roxbury neighborhood. The station is accessible with a short mini-high platform on the outbound end of the main platform.

West Roxbury
West Roxbury station platform looking outbound
Location450 Lagrange Street
West Roxbury, Massachusetts
Coordinates42°16′54″N 71°09′36″W
Owned byMassachusetts Bay Transportation Authority
Line(s)Needham Branch (West Roxbury Branch)
Platforms1 side platform
Tracks1
Connections MBTA Bus: 35, 36, 37
Construction
Parking175 spaces
Disabled accessYes
Other information
Fare zone1
History
OpenedJune 3, 1850
Rebuilt1979–1987
Traffic
Passengers (2018)444 (weekday average boardings)[1]
Services
Preceding station MBTA Following station
Hersey
toward Needham Heights
 Needham Line Highland
toward South Station
Former services
Preceding station MBTA Following station
Bird's Hill
toward Millis
 Millis Branch
Closed 1967
 Highland
toward South Station
Preceding station New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad Following station
Bird's Hill
toward Woonsocket
 Charles River Line Highland
toward Boston

History
West Roxbury station shown on an early-20th-century postcard

The Boston and Providence Railroad (B&P) opened a branch line from Forest Hills to Dedham (where it connected with the B&P's preexisting branch to Dedham via Readville) via West Roxbury on June 3, 1850. South Street (Roslindale), Central (Bellevue), West Roxbury, and Spring Street stations all opened with the branch.[2] The New Haven Railroad, successor to the B&P, opened the Needham Cutoff on November 4, 1906 from West Roxbury to Needham Junction, allowing trains from the former New York and New England Railroad to reach Boston without needing to use the Boston and Albany Railroad's Highland Branch.[2] Service to Dedham via West Roxbury ended in 1940, leaving West Roxbury an intermediate station on the commuter lines to Needham and West Medway.[2]

The entire Needham line was closed from 1979 to 1987 while the Southwest Corridor was reconstructed. During that time, most of the stations (including West Roxbury) were renovated for accessibility.[3]

References
  1. Central Transportation Planning Staff (2019). "2018 Commuter Rail Counts". Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority.
  2. Humphrey, Thomas J.; Clark, Norton D. (1985). Boston's Commuter Rail: The First 150 Years. Boston Street Railway Association. pp. 21–24, 29, 43–46. ISBN 9780685412947.
  3. Belcher, Jonathan. "Changes to Transit Service in the MBTA district" (PDF). NETransit.

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