Hersey station

Hersey is an MBTA Commuter Rail station in Needham, Massachusetts. Located in the Bird's Hill neighborhood, it serves the Needham Line. The station serves as a park-and-ride, with easy access from Route 128. Hersey station has been open since 1917, except for an 8-year closure during Southwest Corridor construction. It is fully accessible.

Hersey
Hersey station in May 2012, facing east
LocationGreat Plain Avenue at Broad Meadow Road
Needham, Massachusetts
Coordinates42°16′33″N 71°12′53″W
Line(s)Needham Branch (Needham Cutoff)
Platforms1 side platform
Tracks1
Construction
Parking360 spaces ($4.00 fee)
8 accessible spaces
Bicycle facilities11 spaces
Disabled accessYes
Other information
Fare zone2
History
Opened1917[1]
ClosedOctober 13, 1979–October 19, 1987[2]
Rebuiltc. 1991
Previous namesBird's Hill (1917–1979)[2]
Traffic
Passengers (2018)525 (weekday average boardings)[3]
Services
Preceding station MBTA Following station
Needham Junction
toward Needham Heights
 Needham Line West Roxbury
toward South Station
Former services
Preceding station MBTA Following station
Needham Junction
toward Millis
 Millis Branch
Closed 1967
 West Roxbury
toward South Station
Preceding station New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad Following station
Needham Junction
toward Woonsocket
 Charles River Line West Roxbury
toward Boston

History
The mini-high platform at Hersey was built around 1992

The Needham Cutoff opened 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 New York Central's Highland Branch.[1] Building the cutoff required a significant length of difficult rock cuts - "one of the heaviest pieces of short railroad construction ever attempted in New England" - reaching a depth of 57 feet (17 m) at Great Plain Avenue.[4] Needham Junction was originally the only stop on the cutoff; Bird's Hill opened as an infill station at Great Plains Avenue in 1917.[1]

The station was closed with the rest of the line on October 13, 1979 due to Southwest Corridor construction.[2] On March 21, 1980, the Massachusetts Legislature directed the MBTA to rename the station to honor Needham selectman Henry D. Hersey, "an outstanding spokesman for commuter rail service in the commonwealth".[5] In addition to this station, the MBTA also honored Hersey by naming locomotive MBTA 1000 as Henry D. Hersey "Mr. Commuter Rail".[6] Newly designated Hersey station reopened with the rest of the line on October 19, 1987.[2]

Unlike the other Needham Line stations, Hersey was not renovated during the closure with a mini-high platform for handicapped accessibility.[7] A mini-high platform was added between 1990 and 1992, making the Needham Line the first completely accessible line on the MBTA system; a parking lot was also added on the south side of the station[8][9][10]

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References
  1. Humphrey, Thomas J.; Clark, Norton D. (1985). Boston's Commuter Rail: The First 150 Years. Boston Street Railway Association. p. 45. ISBN 9780685412947.
  2. Belcher, Jonathan. "Changes to Transit Service in the MBTA district" (PDF). NETransit.
  3. Central Transportation Planning Staff (2019). "2018 Commuter Rail Counts". Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority.
  4. "LAST RAIL LAID.: Work on Boston's Newest Railroad is Progressing Rapidly--The Air Line From West Roxbury to Needham Has Been Cut Through Solid Rock Part of the Way". Boston Daily Globe. February 4, 1906. p. 7 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. "AN ACT PROVIDING FOR THE MASSACHUSETTS BAY TRANSPORTATION BIRDS HILL SECTION OF THE TOWN OF NEEDHAM AS THE HENRY D. HERSEY STATION" (PDF). Massachusetts State Legislature. 21 March 1980. Retrieved 1 June 2014.
  6. "Henry Dyer Hersey, 91; helped restore rail service to Needham". Boston Globe. May 19, 1993. p. 21 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. Operations Directorate Planning Division (November 1990). "Ridership and Service Statistics" (3 ed.). Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. pp. 1–5 – via Internet Archive.
  8. MBTA : ACCESS; The Guide to Accessible Services and Facilities. Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. June 1992. p. 15 – via Internet Archive.
  9. Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (March 19, 1990). "Public Notice of Environmental Review - Project: MBTA Hersey Station Improvements". Boston Globe – via Newspapers.com.
  10. "Public Notice of Environmental Review". Boston Globe. March 19, 1990. p. 51 – via Newspapers.com.

Media related to Hersey station at Wikimedia Commons


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