Magoun Square station

Magoun Square station

Company type	Light rail station
Industry	Public transportation
Founded	December 12, 2022 (2022-12-12)
Headquarters	Somerville, Massachusetts , United States
Products	Green Line light rail service (E branch)

Magoun Square station serves as a light rail stop on the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) Green Line, situated along Lowell Street just south of Magoun Square in Somerville, Massachusetts. This accessible facility includes a single island platform that accommodates two tracks on the Medford Branch. It commenced operations on December 12, 2022, as part of the Green Line Extension (GLX), which extended the Green Line with two northern branches and is currently served by the E branch.

The location has a history of rail service dating back to the 19th century. The Boston and Lowell Railroad (B&L) established Taylor's Ledge station near Central Street by the early 1850s; it was reconstructed in 1854 and shortly thereafter renamed Somerville Centre. In 1870, a rail connection from West Cambridge to Somerville Centre was constructed, followed by a new station building in 1872. The station was renamed Somerville Junction during the 1890s and underwent another rebuild in 1898. It remained under the operation of the Boston and Maine Railroad, successor to B&L, until service ceased in the 1940s.

Throughout the 20th century, various proposals to extend the Green Line included Somerville Junction as a potential stop. In 2008, plans for the GLX selected a Lowell Street station near this historic site. After encountering significant budget overruns, the GLX project underwent reassessment in 2015. A revised, more cost-effective design released in 2016 renamed the stop Magoun Square. Subsequently, a contract for design and construction was awarded in 2017, with building work beginning in early 2020 and nearing completion by late 2021.

Station design

Magoun Square station is positioned just off Lowell Street close to Vernon Street in Somerville, approximately south of Magoun Square. The Lowell Line runs roughly northwest to southeast through this vicinity, with the two-track Medford Branch of the Green Line located on the southern side of the Lowell Line tracks.

This station comprises a single island platform, measuring long and wide, situated between the Green Line’s dual tracks and fully sheltered by a canopy. The platform’s height is set at to enable accessible boarding on current light rail vehicles (LRVs), with design provisions allowing it to be raised to for future Type 9 and Type 10 LRVs. The layout also anticipates possible future expansion to . Both platform and tracks lie below street level.

Located northwest of Lowell Street, the platform links via a sloped footbridge to the station’s headhouse, which is equipped with stairs and two elevators to ensure accessibility. Adjacent to Lowell Street on the footbridge are a secure "Pedal and Park" bike cage with space for 36 bicycles as well as 16 additional bike racks. An emergency exit can be found at the northwest end of the platform. Public artwork includes Unfolding Light by Aaron Stephen—an illuminated sculptural installation above the footbridge—and graffiti-inspired murals on station signage panels. The Somerville Community Path runs underneath Lowell Street and connects with the Medford Branch southeast of this station.

Railroad station

The Boston and Lowell Railroad (B&L) commenced operations in 1835, with local stops emerging shortly thereafter. By 1850, a station named Taylor's Ledge was situated west of Central Street in Somerville, deriving its name from a nearby slate formation. In April 1852, there was an attempted arson attack on the station building. A replacement structure was erected in 1854 and was soon renamed Somerville Centre following requests from local residents.

The bridge carrying Central Street over the railroad tracks was expanded in 1868. In 1870, B&L constructed a cutoff line running from West Cambridge through West Somerville to near Somerville Centre. This allowed Lexington Branch trains to access the B&L mainline into Boston. A new station edifice was inaugurated in 1872. Around 1879, the station's name was shortened to Somerville, although the designation "Somerville Centre" remained widely used. Service on the Massachusetts Central Railroad began in 1881 utilizing both the cutoff and B&L mainline. By 1885, the junction connecting the cutoff with the mainline had become known as Somerville Junction.

In 1887, the Boston and Maine Railroad (B&M) leased B&L as its Southern Division. The original stone arch bridge at Central Street was replaced with a steel truss bridge in 1889. The opening of North Union Station during 1893–94 led to confusion among Somerville stations, resulting in this station being renamed Somerville Junction around 1894. A new station building featuring a canopy was unveiled in December 1898.

In 1910, bridges were constructed to carry Lowell Street over both the Southern Division mainline and cutoff lines. This restored Lowell Street as a through route after it had been a dead-end for decades. Laurin A. Woodward served as station agent from 1871 into the early 1920s; his tenure ranked among the longest for such positions in New England. On April 24, 1927 passenger trains from Lexington and Central Massachusetts branches were rerouted via the Fitchburg Division; consequently, the cutoff became dedicated to freight traffic only.

By the early 1930s, although some trains continued stopping there, the Somerville Junction station building had been deserted. The B&M officially closed this stop in 1939, with limited service persisting into the early 1940s. The western section of the cutoff was abandoned in April 1980 to facilitate construction of the Red Line Northwest Extension; abandonment of the eastern segment followed in 1983. A short stretch near Somerville Junction remained active for industrial purposes until it too was abandoned in 2007. The Lowell Street bridge was closed in 2000 and subsequently reconstructed during 2005–06.

Historical plans

In 1922, the Boston Elevated Railway (BERy) inaugurated Lechmere station as the endpoint for streetcar operations within the Tremont Street subway. At that time, with the downtown subway system and several radial routes active, BERy envisioned three additional radial subway lines: one tracing the Midland Branch through Dorchester, another branching off from the Boylston Street subway beneath Huntington Avenue, and a third extending northwest from Lechmere Square into Somerville.

The 1926 Report on Improved Transportation Facilities recommended extending service from Lechmere to North Cambridge by way of the Southern Division and an 1870-era cutoff track. It also considered further expansion beyond North Cambridge along the Lexington Branch, plus a branch from Somerville Junction to Woburn. Initially, Somerville Junction was planned as a rapid transit terminus and yard, with streetcars from Massachusetts Avenue and Davis Square running over the cutoff. Although land was acquired in 1925 for this terminal, plans later shifted toward a full rapid transit extension to North Cambridge, designating Somerville Junction as an intermediate stop.

In 1945, the state-appointed Coolidge Commission proposed nine suburban rapid transit extensions akin to those in 1926, including a Lechmere–Woburn extension via the Southern Division with Somerville Junction as an intermediate station. The 1962 North Terminal Area Study suggested abandoning the elevated Lechmere–North Station segment and rerouting the Main Line (now the Orange Line) along the Boston & Maine Western Route, adding a branch along the Southern Division toward Arlington or Woburn.

Established in 1964 to support suburban commuter rail subsidies and rapid transit expansions, the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) rebranded the Tremont Street subway and its connecting lines as the Green Line in 1965. The 1966 Program for Mass Transportation prioritized a modest extension from Lechmere to Washington Street, followed by a second phase reaching either Mystic Valley Parkway (Route 16) or West Medford.

The final report of the Boston Transportation Planning Review in 1972 classified a Green Line extension from Lechmere as a lower priority, a stance reflected in later proposals. In 1980, MBTA explored the "Green Line Northwest Corridor" extending from to Medford, contemplating further extensions beyond Lechmere to Tufts University or .

Station development

A 1991 settlement between the state and the Conservation Law Foundation, resolving litigation over vehicle emissions linked to the Big Dig, included a commitment to build a "Green Line Extension To Ball Square/Tufts University." However, no significant advancement occurred until an updated agreement in 2005. The Beyond Lechmere Northwest Corridor Study, conducted as a Major Investment Study/alternatives analysis that year, assessed light rail, bus rapid transit, and commuter rail expansions—all featuring a Lowell Street station near the former Somerville Junction site. Leading alternatives proposed an extension to , incorporating Lowell Street as an intermediate stop.

In October 2006, the Massachusetts Executive Office of Transportation and Public Works submitted an Expanded Environmental Notification Form (EENF) identifying a Green Line extension with branches to Medford and Union Square as preferred options. By December, the Secretary of Environmental Affairs required that draft environmental impact reports (DEIR) analyze Lowell Line stations at and Gilman Square but excluded assessment of a Lowell Street commuter rail station.

Plans released in May 2008 presented potential station locations; Lowell Street station was evaluated on both sides of the Lowell Street bridge. The northwest side was ultimately selected to avoid curved platforms and property acquisition issues despite local preference for the southeast side due to its connection with the Somerville Community Path. The October 2009 DEIR confirmed this site choice, describing a single island platform with a headhouse equipped with stairs, an escalator, and two elevators linking to the bridge. Construction of Maxwell's Green transit-oriented development adjacent to this planned station commenced in 2011.

Revised plans published in June 2011 expanded the street-level entrance plaza and incorporated an emergency exit at the platform's northwest end. Further modifications in February 2012 adjusted plaza design and introduced a bicycle cage. By late 2012, completion of the Medford Branch segment from Gilman Square to College Avenue was anticipated by June 2019. A June 2013 update relocated the bike cage and eliminated a mechanical penthouse from the headhouse structure. Design work was paused while Phase 2/2A stations (, , and ) were prioritized for earlier openings; design efforts resumed in autumn 2014 and reached approximately 90% completion by June 2015.

Redesign

In August 2015, the MBTA revealed significant budget overruns, leading to a comprehensive reassessment of the GLX initiative. By December of that year, agreements with four contractors were terminated; while existing construction persisted, no fresh contracts were issued. Options such as project cancellation and cost reductions—including the possible removal of the Union Square Branch—were explored.

In May 2016, both the Massachusetts Department of Transportation and MBTA boards endorsed a value-engineered revision of the project aimed at lowering expenses. The station designs were simplified to mirror the surface stops found on the Green Line D branch, eliminating features like canopies, faregates, escalators, and some elevators. At Lowell Street station, the number of elevators was decreased from two to one.

By December 2016, the MBTA announced a revised launch target set for 2021. The Lowell Street station was renamed Magoun Square to reflect its adjacent neighborhood. A design-build contract was awarded in November 2017, with the winning bid including six optional add-ons—previously removed components—such as full-length canopies at every station and reinstating a second elevator at Lowell Street.

Station design advanced from zero percent completion in March 2018 to 44 percent by December that year, reaching 80 percent by October 2019.

Construction

During 2020, one abutment of the Lowell Street bridge was relocated to allow Green Line tracks to pass without necessitating bridge closure to traffic. Foundation work for platforms took place mid-year, with concrete pouring underway by November. The platform was finished in early 2021, followed by the erection of canopy steel structures by April. Elevator shafts were installed in April 2021, and the footbridge was positioned in June.

Initially, plans called for extending the D branch to Medford/Tufts; however, by April 2021, the MBTA opted for the E branch to serve the Medford branch instead. The station's opening date was first projected for December 2021 but faced several postponements—to May 2022, then "late summer" 2022—before finally opening in November 2022. Testing of trains on the Medford Branch commenced in May 2022. The Medford Branch, including Magoun Square station, officially began service on December 12, 2022.