Lowell station
| Company type | Transit center |
|---|---|
| Industry | Public transportation |
| Founded | 1983 |
| Headquarters | Lowell, Massachusetts , United States |
Area served | Lowell, Massachusetts and surrounding areas |
| Products | Commuter rail service, local bus service, park and ride facilities |
Lowell station, formally known as the Charles A. Gallagher Transit Terminal, operates as a key intermodal transit center situated in Lowell, Massachusetts. Positioned off Thorndike Street (Route 3A) near the Lowell Connector, just south of downtown, it serves as the northern endpoint for the MBTA Commuter Rail Lowell Line. The facility includes three parking structures catering to park and ride commuters. Additionally, the Robert B. Kennedy Bus Transfer Center acts as the central hub for local bus routes managed by the Lowell Regional Transit Authority. The entire complex is fully accessible, with elevators providing access between the station building and the island rail platform.
History
The arrival of the Boston and Lowell Railroad (B&L) in 1835 brought a downtown station close to Merrimack Street in Lowell. Shortly thereafter, in 1838, the Nashua and Lowell Railroad commenced operations. To eliminate the need for reversing maneuvers at this downtown location, Union Station was inaugurated on Middlesex Street in 1848. This station also served additional lines including the Lowell and Lawrence Railroad (1848), Salem and Lowell Railroad (1850), and Framingham and Lowell Railroad (1870). Except for the Framingham and Lowell route, these railroads came under B&L control from 1858 onward. The original downtown facility was succeeded by Merrimack Street station in 1853, which incorporated city government offices and housed Huntington Hall auditorium.
The competing Boston and Maine Railroad (B&M) introduced the Lowell and Andover Railroad in 1874, which ran alongside the Concord River to reach Central Street station at Central and Green Street. After acquiring B&L in 1887, B&M constructed a new Union Station at the same Middlesex Street location in 1894, consolidating services by shifting operations from Central Street station in 1895. Merrimack Street station ceased passenger service in 1905, leaving Union Station as the exclusive passenger terminal.
Union Station also accommodated intercity train services collaboratively operated by B&M and its partners, including Boston–Montreal routes such as the Alouette, Ambassador, New Englander, and Red Wing, along with New York City–Maine trains like the Bar Harbor Express, Down Easter, East Wind, and State of Maine. By 1960, these Montreal and Maine routes were discontinued, leaving primarily Boston–Lowell commuter trains along with limited service to New Hampshire until 1967.
Union Station was demolished during the 1950s to make way for highway construction, replaced by a smaller station approximately south of its former site. The Charles A. Gallagher Transit Terminal opened there in 1983, featuring a brick structure, parking garage, and a pedestrian bridge connecting to an island platform. In the 1990s, a second parking garage was added to accommodate growing demand. The Robert B. Kennedy Bus Transfer Center was established in 2005 as a new LRTA bus hub within Gallagher Terminal, coinciding with construction of a third parking garage above the rail tracks around that period.