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Lowell Line

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Lowell Line
Company typeCommuter rail
IndustryRail transport
PredecessorBoston and Lowell Railroad
Founded1835
Headquarters
Boston
,
United States
Area served
Boston metropolitan area, Lowell, Massachusetts
ProductsCommuter rail service
ParentMassachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA)

The Lowell Line is an MBTA Commuter Rail route that runs in a north–south direction between Boston and Lowell, Massachusetts. It includes nine stations, with the endpoints located at North Station in Boston and Lowell station. Except for one station closed indefinitely since 2020, all stops along the line are fully accessible.

This service operates along the New Hampshire Main Line, which was originally constructed as the Boston and Lowell Railroad in 1835 and later leased by the Boston and Maine Railroad in 1887. Historically, the line provided local passenger service between Boston and Concord, New Hampshire, primarily via the Woburn Loop. Passenger service to Concord ceased in 1967 during the MBTA subsidy transition but briefly resumed between 1980 and 1981. The Woburn Loop service ended in 1981, leaving the Lowell–Boston segment as the main operational route.

Boston and Lowell Railroad

Freight operations on the Boston and Lowell Railroad began in 1835, facilitating the transport of goods from Lowell's mills to Boston’s harbor. Rapidly increasing passenger demand led to the introduction of local passenger service by 1842. The section north of Lowell was initially owned by the Boston, Concord & Montreal Railroad, established in 1844, which extended its tracks to Wells River, Vermont by 1853. The Boston & Maine Railroad (B&M) acquired this line in 1895.

During the peak era of rail travel (approximately 1880–1940), this corridor was vital for Boston–Montreal connections. The Ambassador provided direct service from Boston's North Station to Montreal via Concord, New Hampshire until 1966. Other prominent trains such as the New Englander, Alouette, and Red Wing operated through Vermont before entering Quebec. The Montreal route was promoted as an Air-line railroad, highlighting its straight and efficient path.

Major reductions took place on May 18, 1958, terminating Stoneham Branch operations and closing stations including Medford Hillside, Tufts College, and North Somerville. Additional cutbacks on June 14, 1959, ended service north of Woburn on the Woburn Loop; Boston–Lowell local trips were reduced to seven round trips daily. This phase also saw closures of Tyngsboro, Bleachery, and South Wilmington stations. By 1967, B&M had scaled back passenger service from Concord down to Lowell.

MBTA era

In 1973, the MBTA took ownership of the Lowell Line along with other commuter routes such as the Haverhill Line serving Greater Boston. Passenger operations on the Lowell Line were contracted to the Boston and Maine Railroad (B&M). Despite undergoing bankruptcy proceedings, B&M continued running commuter rail services under court protection while pursuing financial recovery through reorganization. It eventually emerged from bankruptcy after being acquired by Guilford Transportation Industries (GTI) in 1983.

Between 1980 and 1981, passenger service briefly extended daily to Concord with two weekday round trips and one weekend trip. Initial stops included Manchester and Nashua; Merrimack was added later. This extension ended following withdrawal of federal funding support.

The opening of the Anderson Regional Transportation Center on April 28, 2001, replaced Mishawum as the principal park-and-ride facility for Route 128 on the Lowell Line; Mishawum’s service was subsequently limited to reverse-peak trips. On December 15, 2001, Amtrak’s Downeaster began operating south of Wilmington. In October 2006, four additional short-turn round trips terminating at Anderson RTC were introduced by the MBTA. Weekend service was suspended from July through September 2017 to allow installation of Positive Train Control systems in compliance with a federal deadline set for 2020.

2020s

The COVID-19 outbreak caused a significant reduction in service frequency between March and June 2020, as well as from December 2020 through April 2021. Weekend operations on seven lines, including the Lowell Line, were halted starting January 23, 2021, and later reinstated on July 3, 2021. Until December 2020, certain Haverhill Line trains utilized the Wildcat Branch and the inner Lowell Line, making stops between Anderson/Woburn and West Medford; this routing partially resumed in April 2021 for limited Haverhill service but excluded Lowell Line stops.

By February 2022, the Lowell Line offered approximately 21.5 round trips on weekdays and nine on weekends. Daily ridership climbed to 6,485 by October 2022, reaching about 59% of pre-pandemic figures. In June 2022, the MBTA explored enhancements to sidings in Woburn aimed at enabling 30-minute intervals between Boston and Anderson/Woburn by 2024. The Medford Branch of the Green Line Extension, which opened on December 12, 2022, parallels the Lowell Line corridor featuring five Green Line stations but does not introduce new commuter rail stops.

Between September and November 2023, all outer Haverhill Line trains were diverted via the Wildcat Branch due to signal upgrades, stopping solely at Anderson/Woburn. On March 25, 2024, midday weekday service was scaled back to two-hour intervals owing to construction projects including the Winchester Center station rebuild and infrastructure improvements along the High Line in the Inner Belt District. From May through September 2024, inbound midday Haverhill trains again operated via the Wildcat Branch amid inner-line construction efforts. Regular midday Lowell Line service recommenced on June 2, 2025.

Proposed expansion to New Hampshire

Previously, MBTA Commuter Rail connected Concord, Manchester, and Nashua through the Lowell Line until subsidies ceased in 1967. Service briefly restarted in 1980 but was discontinued in 1981 following federal grant cuts. In October 2010, the New Hampshire Department of Transportation obtained a $2.24 million federal grant to investigate extending the Lowell Line to Concord. However, a legislative proposal in New Hampshire during 2011 aimed to block this extension and relinquish a $4.1 million planning grant. As part of a larger agreement, the MBTA secured trackage rights from Pan Am in May 2011.

A report by NHDOT in 2014 estimated the project's cost at $246 million. The plan anticipated running 34 daily trains to Nashua and 16 to Manchester, with Boston commute durations as short as 54 minutes from Nashua and approximately one hour and twenty-five minutes from Manchester, serving an estimated daily ridership of around 3,120 passengers. Advocates regarded this expansion as a crucial connection to Boston’s economic hub, while critics pointed to substantial expenses and questioned its overall necessity.

In December 2020, a $5.5 million contract was awarded to AECOM for preliminary engineering work encompassing design development, environmental assessments, and public outreach for extending service through southern New Hampshire along existing rail corridors. Proposed stations included South Nashua, Crown Street (Nashua), Bedford, and Manchester. By January 2022, Manchester had approved a location adjacent to its transit authority for layover facilities.

By late 2022, AECOM and New Hampshire officials were finalizing design details and financial strategies targeting project completion in 2023. Nevertheless, in December 2022 the New Hampshire Executive Council withdrew state funding after revised cost projections escalated to $782 million. As of , planning for this corridor extension remains indefinitely suspended.

Track Speeds

The maximum allowable speed north of Wilmington is . South of Wilmington, speed limits vary depending on direction: northbound tracks permit up to , where track curvature allows, while southbound tracks have a maximum speed of . Additional speed limitations are enforced at Wilmington, the West Medford grade crossings, and in the vicinity of North Station.

Additional Services

The Downeaster operated by Amtrak to Maine, along with certain express trains on the Haverhill Line, utilize the Lowell Line segment between North Station and Wilmington. From there, they transition via the Wildcat Branch onto the Haverhill Line to bypass single-track portions.

This line functions as the main freight clearance corridor entering Boston from the north. Stations equipped with high-level platforms also feature mini-high platforms or dedicated freight passing tracks. Freight operations along this route are managed by Pan Am Railways, including local freight runs originating from Lawrence Yard and DOBO (Dover to Boston through freight).

Station listing

State Fare zone Location Miles (km)[1][2][3] Station Connections and notes
MA 1A Boston 0.0 (0.0) Disabled access
  1. REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system
 Template:Ric: Template:Lnl
Template:Ric: Fitchburg Line, Haverhill Line, Newburyport/Rockport Line
Template:Ric: Template:Ric, Template:Ric (Green Line D branch, Green Line E branch)
Template:Ric: Template:MBTA bus links
Template:Bus icon Template:MBTA other buses
Somerville 0.8 (1.3) Boston Engine Terminal Flag stop exclusively for MBTA personnel
Medford 4.0 (6.4)
  1. REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system
 Operational from September 1977 until October 1979
5.5 (8.9) Disabled access
  1. REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system
 Template:Ric: Template:MBTA bus links
1 rowspan="3" |Winchester 7.3 miles (11.7 km) Disabled access
  1. REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system
||
7.8 miles (12.6 km) Disabled access
  1. REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system
||Template:Ric: Template:MBTA bus links
Previously a junction with Woburn Branch (closed 1981)
9.0 miles (14.5 km)
  1. REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system
||Service ended June 1978
rowspan="4" |Woburn, Massachusetts bgcolor=dfdfdf |10.5 miles (16.9 km)
  1. REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system
||Closed January 18, 1965
10.9 miles (17.5 km)
  1. REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system
||In operation from 1979 to 1996
rowspan="2" |2 bgcolor=dfdfdf |11.6 miles (18.7 km)
  1. REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system
||Flag stop with limited reverse commute options; closed indefinitely December 14, 2020.
12.7 miles (20.4 km) Disabled access
  1. REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system
||Template:Ric: Downeaster
Template:Bus icon Template:MBTA other buses
3 rowspan="2" |Wilmington, Massachusetts 15.2 miles (24.5 km) Disabled access
  1. REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system
||Template:Bus icon Lowell Regional Transit Authority: Template:MBTA other buses
Connection point with the Wildcat Branch
17.0 miles (27.4 km)
  1. REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system
||Closed January 18, 1965
rowspan="2" |Billerica, Massachusetts bgcolor=dfdfdf |19.2 miles (30.9 km)
  1. REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system
||Service ceased January 18, 1965
5 21.8 miles (35.1 km) Disabled access
  1. REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system
||LRTA: Template:MBTA other buses
6 Lowell, Massachusetts Disabled access
  1. REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system
 LRTA: Template:MBTA other buses
MVRTA: Template:MBTA other buses
Chelmsford, Massachusetts 28.7 miles (46.2 km) Closed June 30, 1967
rowspan=4 New Hampshire Nashua, New Hampshire 39.0 miles Closed June 30, 1967; reopened January 28, 1980 until March 1, 1981
Merrimack, New Hampshire 46.1 miles Operated April 1980 through March 1, 1981
Manchester, New Hampshire 55.5 miles Closed June 30, 1967; reopened January 28, 1980 until March 1, 1981
Concord, New Hampshire 73.3 miles Closed June 30, 1967; reopened January 28, 1980 until March 1, 1981

Station no longer in service


Woburn Branch

Location Distance (km)[1][2][3] Station Notes and connections
Winchester 7.8 (12.6) Disabled access
  1. REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system
 Connection to mainline
Woburn 9.0 (14.5)
  1. REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system
 Service discontinued February 1, 1981[4]
9.8 (15.8)
  1. REDIRECT Template:Boston transportation system
 Service discontinued February 1, 1981[4]
  Station no longer in operation
  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named bluebook
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named sne
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named trackchart
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 Cite error: Invalid <ref> tag; no text was provided for refs named 1981woburn
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