. The main line was originally built by the
. The Stoughton Branch, built as the Stoughton Branch Railroad, splits at
. Extensions of both branches to North Kingston, New Bedford, and Fall River are under construction.
. The MBTA bought the section of the Providence-Boston line in Massachusetts, as well as many other lines including the Stoughton Branch, from Penn Central on January 27, 1973. On April 1, 1976 Conrail took over Penn Central and the commuter rail equipment was sold to the MBTA, though operation continued to be done by Conrail. Full subsidies by the MBTA for the Providence and Stoughton lines began on September 28, 1976, before which the Federal government helped. On March 31, 1977 the
and Rhode Island Department of Transportation began to subsidize service beyond the MBTA district, and
began to pay to keep its station open, that cost later going to the Brockton Area Transit Authority.
On November 3, 1979 the line was closed north of Readville for long-term reconstruction as part of the Southwest Corridor project. All trains began using what is now the
, and special shuttle trains connected South Station to Back Bay. The new line, rebuilt below grade with space for three tracks (the old one had been above grade with room for four tracks), opened on October 5, 1987. The Orange Line shares the corridor between Back Bay and Forest Hills.
On February 20, 1981 the MBTA stopped serving Rhode Island, as funding from the state had ended. Rush-hour service was restored on February 1, 1988. On 20 June 1990, a new stop opened in South Attleboro and most trains were extended to the station; regular Sunday service returned in 1992. Some off-peak weekday trains were extended to Providence starting on December 11, 2000. Weekend service to Providence has resumed as of July 29, 2006, and service to T.F. Green Airport started on December 6, 2010.
The MBTA owns the track from Boston to the Rhode Island border. Track in Rhode Island is owned by
. The entire line is part of the
As part of the 1988 Pilgrim Partnership Agreement, Rhode Island provides capital funding (including some of its federal formula funds) for MBTA expansion in the state. Massachusetts (through the MBTA) provides the operating subsidy for
service in return. Rhode Island also pays Amtrak to allow the MBTA to use its tracks.
As part of the South County Commuter Rail initiative, a 20-mile extension is under construction past Providence to
in Rhode Island. The T. F. Green Airport part of the extension is operating, with the Wickford part expected to start operating in 2012. The opening of Wickford Junction will increase the number of trains south of Providence to eight in each direction per day.
. Possible stops include
. Rhode Island eventually plans to have its own statewide commuter service along the Northeast Corridor that would connect with MBTA service and an extension of
. This would be the first commuter service to Westerly since the last state-sponsored train was run in December 1979.
The Stoughton branch is currently being extended to Taunton, Fall River, and New Bedford under a project called South Coast Rail. Track has been bought from CSX, but construction has not yet begun on stations.
All stations but Sharon are handicapped accessible with short or full-length high level platforms. Newer stations like T.F. Green Airport, and Amtrak stations like Providence, usually have full-length high level platforms; older stations have mostly been retrofitted with high-level platforms 1 car length long. See also
| State |
Milepost |
City |
Station |
Opening date |
Connections and notes |
MAThe Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...
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228.5 |
Boston |
South StationSouth Station, New England's second-largest transportation center , located at the intersection of Atlantic Avenue and Summer Street in Dewey Square, Boston, Massachusetts, is the largest train station and intercity bus terminal in Greater Boston, a prominent train station in the northeastern...
|
1899 |
Silver LineThe Silver Line is the only bus rapid transit line currently operated by the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority . It operates in two sections; the first runs from Dudley Square in Roxbury to downtown Boston, Massachusetts and South Station, mostly via Washington Street, with buses...
service to Logan Airport, Red LineThe 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...
, and all south side Commuter Rail lines
AmtrakThe National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971, to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a portmanteau of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union...
Acela ExpressThe Acela Express is Amtrak's high-speed rail service along the Northeast Corridor in the Northeast United States between Washington, D.C., and Boston via Baltimore, Philadelphia, and New York...
, Lake Shore LimitedThe Lake Shore Limited is a daily passenger train route operated by Amtrak in the Northeastern and Midwestern United States. The train runs between Chicago and Albany, NY, where it divides into two sections that provide thru-service to New York and Boston...
, and Northeast Regional |
| 227.8 |
Back BayBack Bay station, located at 145 Dartmouth Street, between Stuart Street and Columbus Avenue, is a train station in the Back Bay neighborhood of Boston...
|
1899 |
Orange LineThe Orange Line is one of the four subway lines of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. It extends from Forest Hills in Jamaica Plain, Boston in the south to Oak Grove in Malden, Massachusetts in the north. It meets the Red Line at Downtown Crossing, the Blue Line at State, and the Green...
splits from Framingham/Worcester LineThe Framingham/Worcester Line is a railroad line of the MBTA Commuter Rail system, running west from Boston, Massachusetts to Worcester, Massachusetts, though some trains terminate at Framingham, Massachusetts...
AmtrakThe National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971, to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a portmanteau of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union...
Acela ExpressThe Acela Express is Amtrak's high-speed rail service along the Northeast Corridor in the Northeast United States between Washington, D.C., and Boston via Baltimore, Philadelphia, and New York...
, and Lake Shore LimitedThe Lake Shore Limited is a daily passenger train route operated by Amtrak in the Northeastern and Midwestern United States. The train runs between Chicago and Albany, NY, where it divides into two sections that provide thru-service to New York and Boston...
, and Northeast Regional
original line continued northeast from here to a terminal at Park SquarePark Square in downtown Boston, Massachusetts is bounded by Stuart, Charles, Boylston, and Arlington Streets. It is the home of the Boston Four Seasons Hotel and the Boston Park Plaza Hotel & Towers. Across Boylston Street is the Boston Public Garden...
|
| 226.7 |
RugglesRuggles Station is a MBTA subway station on the Orange Line; it is also a MBTA commuter rail station serving the Providence/Stoughton, Franklin, and Needham Lines. It is located at the intersection of Ruggles and Tremont Streets, where the Roxbury neighborhood begins and borders with the nearby...
|
October 5, 1987 |
Orange LineThe Orange Line is one of the four subway lines of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. It extends from Forest Hills in Jamaica Plain, Boston in the south to Oak Grove in Malden, Massachusetts in the north. It meets the Red Line at Downtown Crossing, the Blue Line at State, and the Green...
|
| 223.9 |
Forest HillsForest Hills Station is a station on the MBTA Orange Line, located in Forest Hills in the southern part of the Jamaica Plain neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts at the intersections of Washington Street, Hyde Park Avenue, South Street, The Arborway and Morton Street.Forest Hills is the southern...
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|
Orange LineThe Orange Line is one of the four subway lines of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. It extends from Forest Hills in Jamaica Plain, Boston in the south to Oak Grove in Malden, Massachusetts in the north. It meets the Red Line at Downtown Crossing, the Blue Line at State, and the Green...
; only served by Needham LineThe Needham Line is a branch of the MBTA Commuter Rail system, running west from downtown Boston, Massachusetts through the Boston neighborhoods ofRoxbury,Jamaica Plain,Roslindale,West Roxbury, and the town ofNeedham....
trains
Needham LineThe Needham Line is a branch of the MBTA Commuter Rail system, running west from downtown Boston, Massachusetts through the Boston neighborhoods ofRoxbury,Jamaica Plain,Roslindale,West Roxbury, and the town ofNeedham....
(old Dedham Branch) splits |
| 222.8 |
Mount Hope |
|
closed November 2, 1979 |
| 221.8 |
Clarendon Hills |
|
closed |
| 221.2 |
Hazelwood |
|
closed |
| 220.7 |
Hyde Park Hyde Park is a dissolved municipality and currently the southernmost neighborhood of Boston, Massachusetts, United States. Hyde Park is home to a diverse range of people, housing types and social groups. It is an urban location with suburban characteristics...
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Hyde Park Hyde Park is a station along the MBTA Commuter Rail's Providence/Stoughton line from T. F. Green Airport, Rhode Island to Boston, Massachusetts and the Franklin Line...
|
October 5, 1987 |
temporarily closed November 2, 1979 |
| 219.4 |
Readville Readville is a station on the MBTA commuter rail's Franklin Line from Franklin to Boston, Massachusetts and is also the terminus of the MBTA's Fairmount Line commuter rail line. A few Fairmount trains continue onto the Franklin Line...
|
|
only served by trains using the Fairmount Line The Fairmount Line or Dorchester Branch is a line of the MBTA Commuter Rail system in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. Except for a short portion in Milton, it lies entirely within Boston, progressing in a southwesterly trajectory, passing through the neighborhoods of Dorchester, Mattapan and Hyde Park...
Franklin LineThe Franklin Line of the MBTA Commuter Rail runs from Boston's South Station in a southwesterly direction toward Franklin, Massachusetts. Most Franklin Line trains connect to the Providence/Stoughton Line at Readville though some weekday trains use the Fairmount Line to access South Station...
splits and Fairmount LineThe Fairmount Line or Dorchester Branch is a line of the MBTA Commuter Rail system in Boston, Massachusetts, USA. Except for a short portion in Milton, it lies entirely within Boston, progressing in a southwesterly trajectory, passing through the neighborhoods of Dorchester, Mattapan and Hyde Park...
joins (both part of the Midland Railroad (NYNH&H))
split with Dedham Branch |
| 217.4 |
Westwood Westwood is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 14,618 at the 2010 census. In July 2005, CNN/Money and Money magazine ranked Westwood 13th on its list of the 100 Best Places to Live in the United States. Boston Magazine listed Gay Street in Westwood on its...
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Route 128Route 128 is a station on the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority Providence/Stoughton MBTA Commuter Rail line, with inbound service to Back Bay and South Station in Boston and outbound service towards either Stoughton or TF Green Airport. It is also known as "University Park" station...
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|
AmtrakThe National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971, to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a portmanteau of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union...
Acela ExpressThe Acela Express is Amtrak's high-speed rail service along the Northeast Corridor in the Northeast United States between Washington, D.C., and Boston via Baltimore, Philadelphia, and New York...
and RegionalThe Northeast Regional is an intercity rail service operated by Amtrak in the Northeastern United States. In the past, it has also been known as the NortheastDirect, Acela Regional, and Regional. It is by far the busiest Amtrak route, carrying 7.15 million passengers in fiscal year 2010...
originally Green Lodge |
|
DedhamDedham is a town in and the county seat of Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 24,729 at the 2010 census. It is located on Boston's southwest border. On the northwest it is bordered by Needham, on the southwest by Westwood and on the southeast by...
|
Dedham Road |
|
closed |
| 214.1 |
Canton Canton is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 21,561 at the 2010 census. Canton is part of Greater Boston, about 15 miles southwest of downtown Boston.- History :...
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Canton Junction Canton Junction is a railway station on the MBTA Commuter Rail's Providence/Stoughton line, located a few hundred yards north of the Canton Viaduct. At Canton Junction the two branches of the Providence/Stoughton Line split, one going to T. F...
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|
split with Stoughton Branch |
| 211.0 |
Sharon Sharon is a town in Norfolk County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 17,612 at the 2010 census. Sharon is part of Greater Boston, about 17 miles southwest of downtown Boston....
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Sharon Sharon is a commuter rail station on the MBTA's Providence/Stoughton Line located in Sharon, Massachusetts. It is the only station on the heavily used Providence/Stoughton line that is not handicapped-accessible. The station has two separate entrances for trains to Boston and to T. F. Green...
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|
|
| 206.4 |
Foxborough -Demographics:As of the census of 2000, there were 16,246 people, 6,141 households, and 4,396 families residing in the town. The population density was 809.1 people per square mile . There were 6,299 housing units at an average density of 313.7 per square mile...
|
East Foxboro |
|
closed November 1977 |
| 204.0 |
Mansfield Mansfield is a town in Bristol County, Massachusetts, United States. As of the United States 2010 Census, the town population is 23,184. Mansfield is in the south-southwest suburbs of Boston and is also close to Providence, Rhode Island....
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Mansfield Mansfield is a commuter rail station on the MBTA's Providence/Stoughton Line located in Mansfield, Massachusetts. The station was rebuilt in 2004, and is the second replacement station for Mansfield. It is also the south end of a former Old Colony Railroad line that runs north through Walpole and...
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|
junction with Boston, Clinton, Fitchburg and New Bedford Railroad The Boston, Clinton, Fitchburg and New Bedford Railroad was a railroad in Massachusetts. It was formed in 1876 as a consolidation of the Boston, Clinton and Fitchburg Railroad with the New Bedford Railroad....
(NYNH&H), now the line to FoxboroFoxboro station on the MBTA Commuter Rail system is only used for special events, such as New England Patriots football games, at nearby Gillette Stadium. It lies on a freight line between Mansfield and Framingham, owned by CSX as their Framingham Subdivision...
(special events) |
| 197.1 |
AttleboroAttleboro is a city in Bristol County, Massachusetts, United States and is immediately north of Pawtucket, Rhode Island. Once known as "The Jewelry Capital of the World" for its many jewelry manufacturers, Attleboro had a population of 42,068 at the 2000 census, and a population of 43,645 as of...
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AttleboroAttleboro is a commuter rail station on the MBTA's Providence/Stoughton Line located in Attleboro, Massachusetts.The two station buildings were originally built in 1906 and 1908 by the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad. Later in the 20th Century, the station was both an MBTA and Amtrak...
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junction with Attleborough Branch and Boston, Clinton, Fitchburg and New Bedford Railroad The Boston, Clinton, Fitchburg and New Bedford Railroad was a railroad in Massachusetts. It was formed in 1876 as a consolidation of the Boston, Clinton and Fitchburg Railroad with the New Bedford Railroad....
Attleborough Branch (NYNH&H) |
|
East Junction |
not a station |
Junction with old main line to East Providence |
| 193.9 |
Hebronville |
|
closed |
| 191.9 |
South Attleboro South Attleboro is the southernmost station in Massachusetts on the Providence/Stoughton Line of the MBTA Commuter Rail, and was the southernmost station on weekends, until June 29, 2006, when Rhode Island began funding weekend service to Providence...
|
June 20, 1990 |
|
RIThe state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...
|
190.9 |
Central FallsCentral Falls is a city in Providence County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 19,376 at the 2010 census. With an area of only , it is the smallest and most densely populated city in the smallest state, and the thirty-second most densely populated incorporated place in the United...
|
Boston Switch |
not a station |
Junction with Providence and Worcester Railroad The Providence and Worcester Railroad is a Class II railroad in the United States. The railroad connects from Gardner in central Massachusetts, south through its namesake cities of Worcester and Providence, Rhode Island, and west from Rhode Island through Connecticut and into New York City...
|
| 188.5 |
Pawtucket Pawtucket is a city in Providence County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 71,148 at the 2010 census. It is the fourth largest city in the state.-History:...
|
Pawtucket-Central Falls |
|
closed February 19, 1981 |
| 187.3 |
Woodlawn |
not a station |
Junction with Moshassuck Valley Railroad |
| 186.4 |
ProvidenceProvidence is the capital and most populous city of Rhode Island and was one of the first cities established in the United States. Located in Providence County, it is the third largest city in the New England region...
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ProvidenceProvidence Station is a railroad station in Providence, Rhode Island and is served by Amtrak and the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority . The station has four tracks for passenger service, with a fifth track passing through for Providence and Worcester Railroad freight trains...
|
February 1, 1988 |
AmtrakThe National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971, to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a portmanteau of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union...
Acela ExpressThe Acela Express is Amtrak's high-speed rail service along the Northeast Corridor in the Northeast United States between Washington, D.C., and Boston via Baltimore, Philadelphia, and New York...
and Northeast Regional
temporarily closed February 19, 1981 (but still served by Amtrak) |
| 177.3 |
WarwickWarwick is a city in Kent County, Rhode Island, United States. It is the second largest city in the state, with a population of 82,672 at the 2010 census. Its mayor has been Scott Avedisian since 2000...
|
T.F. Green Airport |
December 6, 2010 |
|
| 164.2 |
North KingstownNorth Kingstown is a town in Washington County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 26,486 at the 2010 census. The famous American portraitist Gilbert Stuart was born in the village of Saunderstown, located in the southern region of North Kingstown....
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Wickford Junction Wickford Junction is a station under construction in North Kingstown, Rhode Island on the Northeast Corridor, extending the Providence/Stoughton Line of the MBTA Commuter Rail south from Providence. It will serve local commuters to Providence and Boston, Massachusetts. The new station will have a ...
|
Early 2012
(Under construction) |
|