Mishawum (MBTA station)

MISHAWUM
Mishawum station viewed from the inbound side
Location	250 Mishawum Road Woburn, Massachusetts
Coordinates	42°30′15″N 71°08′15″W / 42.5043°N 71.1376°W / 42.5043; -71.1376Coordinates: 42°30′15″N 71°08′15″W / 42.5043°N 71.1376°W / 42.5043; -71.1376
Line(s)	Lowell Line
Platforms	2 side platforms
Tracks	2
Construction
Disabled access	No (formerly 2 mini-high level platforms)
Other information
Fare zone	2
History
Opened	September 24, 1984[1]
Previous names	North Woburn Mishawum Park Mishawum Park-128 Mishawum/128
Traffic
Passengers (2013)	42 (weekday inbound average)[2]
Services
Preceding station   MBTA   Following station Winchester Center toward North Station Lowell Line limited service Anderson/Woburn toward Lowell

Mishawum is a passenger rail station on MBTA Commuter Rail Lowell Line, located on Mishawum Road north of downtown Woburn, Massachusetts. Mishawum opened in 1984 at the site of a former station of the same name. Until Anderson RTC opened in 2001, Mishawum served as a park-and-ride station for Route 128 (I-95) and I-93. It is now a limited-service flag stop intended for those reverse commuting to the adjacent office park, though proposals have been made to return it to full-time service.

With just 42 inbound boardings on an average weekday in 2013, Mishawum is one of the least busy stations on the commuter rail system. Only Silver Hill, Plymouth, and Prides Crossing had fewer boardings.^[2] Mishawum is a weekday-only station; weekend trains do not stop.

History

Former station

When the Boston and Lowell Railroad opened in 1835, passenger service operated express between its two endpoints. Over the next several decades, a number of local stops were opened - often several in each town. In addition to several stations on the Woburn Loop, by the late 1800s, there were three mainline stops in Woburn: Montvale at Montvale Avenue, Walnut Hill at Salem Street, and North Woburn, at what was then known as Middle Street in the village of New Boston.^[3] By 1890, both the road and the station were known as Mishawum, after the native name for what is now Charlestown.^[4][5]

The station was located in a less-dense area between the town centers of Woburn, Stoneham, and Reading, each of which was served by its own downtown station. As wooden railway cars gave way to heavier stainless steel, trains accelerated more slowly, pushing railroads to concentrate ridership onto a smaller number of stations. Due to low ridership, Mishawum was discontinued sometime in the mid-20th century, followed by Montvale, Walnut Hill, and other local stops in Billerica and Winchester in 1965.^[1]

Revival

The modern Mishawum station opened in 1984

Through service on the Woburn Loop was cut back to terminate at Woburn station in 1959, and service on the remaining stub line with its two stations (Cross Street and Woburn, both located in the city of Woburn) ceased entirely in 1981 due to poor track conditions that the financially-strained MBTA did not have the capital to repair.^[1] This left a seven-mile gap between Winchester Center and Wilmington stations (except for the Lechmere Warehouse stop, opened in 1979, which served only a single office park), and well-populated Woburn without a full-service commuter rail station.

On September 24, 1984, the MBTA opened a park-and-ride station serving both Woburn residents and drivers from Route 128/I-95 and I-93.^[1] It was variously listed on maps and timetables as Mishawum Park, Mishawum Park-128, Mishawum/128, and finally Mishawum.^[6] A large parking lot was located west of the station between Mishawum Road and Route 128. The new station was just one quarter-mile from Exit 36 on 128, allowing easy access from both highways. In 1992, Peter Pan began operating Logan Express bus service from Mishawum to Logan Airport via I-93 under contract to Massport, following the success of similar services running from Braintree and Shopper's World in Framingham.^[1] A waiting room was built in the parking lot for Logan Express passengers. The route was taken over by Paul Revere Transportation in November 1995.^[1] In September 1998, the MBTA introduced the 355 Mishawum Station-Downtown via Cummings Industrial Park bus route, with two daily round trips.^[1]

Replacement and continued usage

Mishawum was largely replaced by the more modern Anderson RTC in 2001

By the turn of the century, Mishawum station was beginning to become inadequate for its intended use. A station near Route 128 was desired for Amtrak's Downeaster service, but Mishawum's location was not ideal. Although the station was handicapped accessible with mini-high platforms, full-length high-level platforms were desired for speedier boarding. However, the narrow Route 128 underpass would have made the addition of a freight passing track difficult. Handicapped access to the outbound platform also required crossing the tracks at grade, an undesirable situation. Instead, a new station - Anderson Regional Transportation Center - was built half a mile north, with facilities including a full-length high-level island platform, a freight passing track, a pedestrian overpass, a station building with amenities, and large parking lots. Full commuter rail service and Logan Express service shifted to Anderson RTC effective April 28, 2001.^[1]

The MBTA originally intended to close Mishawum after Anderson RTC opened. However, Anderson RTC is further from the commercial and residential center of Woburn, and local officials and business owners desired to retain the stop. After pressure from local politicians, the MBTA agreed to keep Mishawum open as a limited-service reverse commute stop for workers who live in Boston.^[7] A state bill to study reestablishing Mishawum as a full-time stop died in committee in 2002 and 2003.^[8]

During the 2004 Democratic National Convention held at the Fleet Center, commuter rail service was disrupted due to security concerns due to North Station's location under the arena. The parking area at Mishawum was temporarily reopened, with buses numbered as the normally-unused Route 53 running directly to South Station.^[1]

Development and renovations

Mini-high platform with missing edge strip in 2013

In 2004, the MBTA proposed a mixed-use transit-oriented development on the former parking lot with a fire station, residential units, and a hotel, but zoning for the plan was rejected by Woburn City Council due to concerns about density.^[9] In July 2005, two developers bought the 7-acre site from the MBTA for $7.2 million.^[9] In August 2006, the City Council approved the parcel as a "transit oriented development overlay district" allowing the construction of apartment buildings up to 7 stories high, in addition to other possible uses.^[10] The Council approved a 210-apartment building and a 50,000 square foot office building with a below-ground garage in January 2007. Although local opinion favored a smaller residential building, 210 units was considered the minimum number to bring restoration of Mishawum as a full-time station into consideration.^[9] Environmental approval was granted two months later.^[11] The office building and garage were completed in 2010, but the apartment complex is delayed due to financial issues.^[12]

In 2008 the MBTA began the installation of a series of ramps on the inbound side to improve access to the station, which was completed by 2010. However, the outbound stairs and the south ends of the platform were never renovated and are closed off. The mini-high platform edges were removed around 2012 to repair another station and not been replaced, making the station no longer handicapped accessible. The route 355 bus was discontinued in July 2012 as part of general service cutbacks due to the MBTA's financial state, leaving Mishawum with no remaining bus connections.^[1] The abandoned Logan Express building was demolished in 2014 for the construction of a Dave and Busters, which opened in 2015.^[13][14]

Current service consists of three outbound trains during the morning rush hour and three inbound trains during the evening rush hour.

References

External links

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Mishawum (MBTA station).

• MBTA - Mishawum
• Station from I-95/Route 128 from Google Maps Street View