Broadway station (MBTA)
| Company type | MBTA subway station |
|---|---|
| Industry | Public transportation |
| Founded | December 15, 1917 |
| Headquarters | Boston, Massachusetts , United States |
| Products | Subway services (Red Line) |
Broadway station is a subway stop situated in Boston, Massachusetts. It operates on the MBTA's Red Line and is positioned at the intersection of Dorchester Avenue and Broadway within South Boston. The station commenced service on December 15, 1917, as a segment of the Dorchester Extension connecting Downtown Crossing to Andrew. It consists of a single island platform flanked by two tracks.
Railroad stations
In 1845, the Old Colony Railroad was established along South Boston’s western boundary near the Bass River. By the late 1860s, South Boston station was operational just south of the Dover Street (West 4th Street) bridge. During the 1880s, the New York and New England Railroad (NY&NE) maintained its own South Boston station on the Midland Branch close to West 1st Street and B Street; this facility ceased operations by 1896 after services were redirected to the Old Colony terminal amid the construction of South Station.
Both rail lines were incorporated into the New Haven Railroad network during the 1890s as the Old Colony and Midland Divisions. By 1915, South Boston station mainly handled Boston– (Shawmut Branch) trains alongside select Midland and Old Colony Division routes serving points south or from . The station was closed around the time Broadway station opened but briefly resumed service in July 1919 due to a strike affecting subways and streetcars.
Construction
Following completion of the Cambridge Tunnel between Harvard and Park Street in 1912, efforts extended the line further south into Dorchester. Rather than launching all stations simultaneously, openings occurred in stages responding to strong demand: Washington (Downtown Crossing) opened in 1915, followed by South Station Under in 1916, and finally Broadway on December 15, 1917. Initially, Broadway functioned as the southern endpoint until Andrew began service on June 29, 1918. Apart from Park Street—which featured three platforms to accommodate large passenger volumes—Broadway was unique among original Cambridge-Dorchester Tunnel stations for having an island platform, enabling convenient transfers across its three levels. Island platforms reemerged only with aboveground stations like Columbia and Savin Hill in 1927.
Broadway was designed as a tri-level facility incorporating six staircases to facilitate smooth transitions between streetcars and subway trains. Streetcars utilized either a surface platform or a shallow tunnel just below street level, while subway trains operated from the lowest tunnel tier. Each level contained two tracks served by an island platform. The street-level platform accommodated streetcars traveling from the Tremont Street Subway toward City Point and South Boston via the route 9 streetcar line. Buses replaced service on the Bay View line—which used the middle-level tunnel—in 1929; meanwhile, the City Point line continued until March 1, 1953, when it was also supplanted by bus operations.
Renovations
During the mid-1980s, the MBTA allocated $80 million to lengthen platforms at seven Red Line and three Orange Line subway stations, enabling the accommodation of six-car trains. On December 18, 1985, contracts were awarded for Broadway along with three other stations, with construction commencing on February 13, 1986. The refurbishment of Broadway station amounted to $7.9 million and included extending the platform by . Six-car train service was initiated on January 21, 1988. Subsequently, a new entrance located east of Dorchester Avenue was opened on February 16, 1988, and the entire project reached completion on October 26, 1989. This upgrade also featured the installation of elevators, positioning Broadway among the earliest older stations to be retrofitted for accessibility compliance.
As part of the Arts on the Line initiative, two public art pieces were incorporated:
- Domestic Objects & Tools of the Trade by Jay Coogan: a collection of 60 enameled steel sculptures suspended above the platform staircases
- 200 ceramic tiles engraved by students from nearby St. Brigid's School
Broadway was considered as a station for the defunct Urban Ring, a proposed circumferential bus rapid transit (BRT) route intended to link MBTA radial lines and alleviate congestion in downtown Boston. According to draft designs from 2008, westbound stops would have been situated on the Broadway Bridge approach west of Dorchester Avenue, while eastbound stops would have been adjacent to the primary headhouse.
The MBTA has plans to construct a third headhouse equipped with two elevators at the intersection of Dorchester Avenue and West 4th Street to ensure redundant elevator access; existing elevators will also undergo reconstruction. In April 2020, a $6.6 million design contract covering Broadway and was awarded. By 2021, design progress for Broadway had reached 30%, advancing to nearly 75% completion by November 2023.
Streetcar tunnel
The streetcar tunnel at the intermediate level extended from Foundry Street southward to the median of Dorchester Avenue. Service through this tunnel lasted under two years, ceasing operations on October 14, 1919, shortly after the opening of Andrew, which provided more direct access to South Boston and eliminated unprofitable runs along an industrial segment of Dorchester Avenue. The portal at Dorchester Avenue was sealed off in December 1941; however, much of the tunnel structure remains intact.
Over time, the tunnel found several alternate uses: in the 1930s, the Boston Elevated Railway experimented with mushroom farming there; during the 1980s, it served as a test site for tactile platform edging designed for passengers with visual impairments. Part of the old streetcar platform and tunnel now houses a fare lobby constructed in 1985. Following September 11, the MBTA utilized this tunnel space to conduct firefighter training focused on subway emergency scenarios.
In 2012, construction began on a $10 million emergency training facility within the tunnel, funded by the Department of Homeland Security. This $8.8 million center features two Blue Line cars, one Green Line car, and a Silver Line bus. The initial Blue Line car was lowered into place via crane at the Foundry Street Portal in September 2012. The training center officially opened on June 12, 2013, significantly enhancing MBTA’s preparedness for emergency situations.