The Green Line
The "C" Line
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The "C" Branch's predecessor first opened in 1889. Like the "A" line it started to run via the Boylston Street Portal at Public Garden turning around at Park Street. On 3 October 1914 the Boylston Street subway was extended to the Kenmore Incline east of Kenmore Square. Subsequently the subway was extended to its present incline at St. Marys Street on 23 October 1932. Until 1967 the line was known as the number 61. At that time it became the "C" branch of the Green Line under MBTA. As in the other branches the "C" branch has has various terminals on the east end. The service was extended from Park Street to Lechmere on 7 February 1931. From 1967 to 1 January 2005 the line had various eastern terminals that also depended on the rush hour times as well. Those terminals varied from Park Station, Government Center, Lechmere and North Station. Finally on 1 January 2005 the service terminated at the new North Station due in part to the "Big Dig" project. The branch is known as either the Beacon Street Branch or the Cleveland Circle Branch where it terminates close to the Reservoir Car Barn and walking distance to the "D" Branch Reservoir station. Most of the line runs in the median of Beacon Street. One major criticism has been the effort to have the traffic signals along the route be set to work with the trains. The "T" came up with a number of excuses including the cost of putting in a system with new computerized traffic signals but in January, 2008 the MBTA decided to hire a consultant to study the issue. |
To view each picture click on the thumbnail which will blow it up to full size. Simply use the back arrow to return to this page.
. Afternoon at Cleveland Circle - terminal for the "C" Line
| Class 7 3604 waits to cross over to inbound track at Cleveland Circle on the "C" Line | |
| Class 8 3857 waits for the switch to be manually changed at Cleveland Circle so it can head back to downtown Boston. | |
| 3604 is now the rear car on the inbound track at Cleveland Circle waiting to head towards downtown Boston on the busy "C" Line branch of the Green Line. | |
| An Afternoon at the Dean Street Stop |
The pictures were taken at the Dean Road stop. Passengers must board at the front of each car where either the operator or a conductor on the second car collects fares. The stop is more or less typical of the stops on this branch. East of the Dean Road stop is a hill that westbound cars must climb before they cross the street east of the stop. This is a very dangerous crossing as it is NOT protected by a traffic signal. Nevertheless while taking pictures the webmaster observed a car sitting and blocking the tracks who finally moved when a westbound train started to use the warning bell and stopping. An operator that the webmaster met once had one of the Boeing LRV's known for their poor braking ability. In this case the scenario was the same but the results were potentially tragic. The Boeing did not stop despite efforts on the part of the operator and all but demolished the automobile. When the "T" investigated the cause for the crash it was discovered that all three braking systems failed except for the rear most truck of the articulated single car (trains now run with two cars; one being a 7 and the other an 8 class). In the top picture the car blocking the crossing ahead of the LRV is an example of that problem.
The area around Dean Road is made up mostly of apartment buildings on each side. The street itself on the north side has been widen to permit metered parking as shown in one of the pictures where a woman is "feeding the meter". Cleveland Circle is west of Dean Road by a couple of stops. At the "circle" are a set of tracks already mentioned that connect with the "B" branch that is nearby.
| Interlude at Washington Square on a rainy day |
| Washington Square has been used any number of times in MBTA and predecessor photography because of its scenic section east of the stop. These pictures were taken on a rather dreary Saturday morning. If anything though the wet weather enhanced the pictures. Shown are several sequence shots of the same trains either at or near the stop. |
| Outbound 3709 approaches Washington Square a block away. |  |
| Green Line 3709 near Washington Square stop |  |
| Same train crossing street at Washington Square stop. |  |
| 3865 rounds curve near Washington Square heading towards Cleveland Circle. |  |
| Green Line 3865 stops at Washington Square |  |
| Green Line 3866 heading towards Boston enters Wahington Square stop on the C Line |  |
| Green Line 3830 arrives at the Washington Square stop heading towards downtowb |  |
| Car 3688 brings up the rear of an inbound Green Line C Branch train leaving Washington Square in Brookline. |  |
| Outbound Green Line C Branch leaving Washington Square accelerates towards its next stop. |  |
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last update 14 January, 2010 13:54
Information obtained in part from Wikipedia
