Porter (MBTA station)
Encyclopedia
Porter is a train station
in Cambridge, Massachusetts
. It is located at the intersection of Massachusetts Avenue and Somerville Avenue (Porter Square
). It also serves portions of Somerville
. The station was designed by Cambridge Seven Associates
and opened on December 8, 1984. At 105 feet below ground, it is the deepest station in the Boston
area. Its facilities include:
Porter Station's unusual depth is due to the MBTA's decision to build the station in rock rather than soft clay, saving time and money in the construction process. Unlike most MBTA subway stations, the platforms are stacked; the inbound platform and track are above the outbound platform and tracks.
The Porter Square
article describes nearby attractions.
The station has no automobile parking. It is inadvisable to park in the nearby shopping center and take the train, as they will tow. Somerville residents with permits may be able to park on Somerville Avenue near the station.
program. Arts on the Line was devised to bring art into the MBTA's subway stations in the late 1970s and early 1980s. It was the first program of its kind in the United States and became the model for similar drives for art across the country.
Six of the original 20 artworks are (or were) located at Porter station. These works are:
).
Train station
A train station, also called a railroad station or railway station and often shortened to just station,"Station" is commonly understood to mean "train station" unless otherwise qualified. This is evident from dictionary entries e.g...
in Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge, Massachusetts
Cambridge is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, in the Greater Boston area. It was named in honor of the University of Cambridge in England, an important center of the Puritan theology embraced by the town's founders. Cambridge is home to two of the world's most prominent...
. It is located at the intersection of Massachusetts Avenue and Somerville Avenue (Porter Square
Porter Square
Porter Square is a neighborhood in Cambridge and Somerville, Massachusetts in the USA, located around the intersection of Massachusetts Avenue and Somerville Avenue, between Harvard and Davis Squares...
). It also serves portions of Somerville
Somerville, Massachusetts
Somerville is a city in Middlesex County, Massachusetts, United States, located just north of Boston. As of the 2010 census, the city had a total population of 75,754 and was the most densely populated municipality in New England. It is also the 17th most densely populated incorporated place in...
. The station was designed by Cambridge Seven Associates
Cambridge Seven Associates
Cambridge Seven Associates, Inc. is an American architecture firm founded in 1962 and based in Cambridge, Massachusetts. The firm was founded upon the idea that the collaborative efforts of a varied group of designers and architects would be far more effective than those of any one individual...
and opened on December 8, 1984. At 105 feet below ground, it is the deepest station in the Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
area. Its facilities include:
- A stop on the Boston subway's Red LineRed Line (MBTA)The Red Line is a rapid transit line operated by the MBTA running roughly north-south through Boston, Massachusetts into neighboring communities. The line begins west of Boston, in Cambridge, Massachusetts at Alewife station, near the intersection of Alewife Brook Parkway and Route 2...
- A stop on the MBTA Commuter RailMBTA Commuter RailThe MBTA Commuter Rail serves as the regional rail arm of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, in the United States. It is operated under contract by the Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad Company a joint partnership of Veolia Transportation, Bombardier Transportation and Alternate...
Fitchburg LineFitchburg LineThe Fitchburg Line is an MBTA line that runs from Boston's North Station to Fitchburg, Massachusetts. The line is along the tracks of the former Fitchburg Railroad, which was a railroad line across northern Massachusetts, United States, leading to and through the Hoosac Tunnel. It is one of the... - Bus and trolleybusTrolleybusA trolleybus is an electric bus that draws its electricity from overhead wires using spring-loaded trolley poles. Two wires and poles are required to complete the electrical circuit...
connections at street level, including the Number 77 Massachusetts Avenue bus. - Bicycle parking
- An unusually deep set of escalatorEscalatorAn escalator is a moving staircase – a conveyor transport device for carrying people between floors of a building. The device consists of a motor-driven chain of individual, linked steps that move up or down on tracks, allowing the step treads to remain horizontal.Escalators are used around the...
s (143 feet long) descending three levels, with fixed stairs next to them. Steps (in descending order of flights): 60+117+22 = 199 total.
Porter Station's unusual depth is due to the MBTA's decision to build the station in rock rather than soft clay, saving time and money in the construction process. Unlike most MBTA subway stations, the platforms are stacked; the inbound platform and track are above the outbound platform and tracks.
The Porter Square
Porter Square
Porter Square is a neighborhood in Cambridge and Somerville, Massachusetts in the USA, located around the intersection of Massachusetts Avenue and Somerville Avenue, between Harvard and Davis Squares...
article describes nearby attractions.
The station has no automobile parking. It is inadvisable to park in the nearby shopping center and take the train, as they will tow. Somerville residents with permits may be able to park on Somerville Avenue near the station.
Arts on the Line
As a part of the Red Line Northwest Extension, Porter was included as one of the stations involved in the Arts on the LineArts on the Line
Arts on the Line was a program devised to bring art into the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority 's subway stations in the late 1970s and early 1980s. Arts on the Line was the first program of its kind in the United States and became the model for similar drives for art across the country...
program. Arts on the Line was devised to bring art into the MBTA's subway stations in the late 1970s and early 1980s. It was the first program of its kind in the United States and became the model for similar drives for art across the country.
Six of the original 20 artworks are (or were) located at Porter station. These works are:
- Gift of the WindGift of the WindGift of the Wind is a large-scale public kinetic sculpture, by Susumu Shingu, located in Porter Square, Cambridge, Massachusetts at the Porter, Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority subway and commuter rail station...
by Susumu Shingu, a 46-foot tall kinetic sculpture with three large red "wings" that move in response to the wind - Ondas by Carlos DorrienCarlos DorrienCarlos Dorrien, born in 1948 in Buenos Aires, Argentina and of Mexican descent, is an American sculptor who specializes in public art installations, creating large-sized abstract sculptures in granite that are often inspired by ancient history, architecture, archaeological ruins, and human figures....
, a 24-foot tall piece of undulating granite affixed to the station wall both inside the station and outside - Glove Cycle by Mags Harries, a large number of bronze gloves of varying types and sizes scattered inside the station including on the escalator
- Untitled by William Reimann, six granite bollards with various ethnic designs carved into them
- Porter Square Megaliths by David Phillips, four boulders with large "slices" removed and replaced with bronze casts of the missing pieces
- The Lights at the End of the Tunnel by William WainwrightWilliam WainwrightWilliam Wainwright may refer to:* William Wainwright , late 19th and early 20th century developer of Rockaway Beach, Queens in New York* William L. Wainwright, member of the North Carolina General Assembly...
, a large scale reflective mobile located in the stations Mezzanine. (No longer in station)
Accessibility
Porter Square Station is temporarily not wheelchair accessible due to maintenance projected to last from March 2011 to approximately March 2012. There is a short high platform at the commuter rail tracks (see MBTA accessibilityMBTA accessibility
Physical accessibility on the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority system is incomplete but improving, with accessibility on all buses , all Orange Line stations, all but 2 Red Line stations, and all but 2 Blue Line stations...
).