West Natick station
Railroad station in Natick, Massachusetts, US
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
West Natick station is a commuter rail station on the MBTA Commuter Rail Framingham/Worcester Line, located off West Central Street (MA-135) in Natick, Massachusetts. It was opened in 1982 as a park and ride station.
Natick, Massachusetts
West Natick | |||||||||||
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An outbound train leaving West Natick station in 2017 | |||||||||||
| General information | |||||||||||
| Location | 249 West Central Street Natick, Massachusetts | ||||||||||
| Coordinates | 42.2831°N 71.3918°W | ||||||||||
| Line | Worcester Line | ||||||||||
| Platforms | 2 side platforms | ||||||||||
| Tracks | 2 | ||||||||||
| Connections |  MWRTA: 10, 11, Natick Commuter Shuttle | ||||||||||
| Construction | |||||||||||
| Parking | 178 spaces[1] | ||||||||||
| Bicycle facilities | 5 spaces | ||||||||||
| Accessible | Yes | ||||||||||
| Other information | |||||||||||
| Fare zone | 4 | ||||||||||
| History | |||||||||||
| Opened | August 23, 1982[2] | ||||||||||
| Passengers | |||||||||||
| 2024 | 533 daily boardings[3] | ||||||||||
| Services | |||||||||||
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History
The Boston and Albany Railroad opened through Natick in September 1834.[4] In the late 1800s, Walkerville station was briefly open at Speen Street, midway between Natick Center and the modern station site.[5][6]
On August 23, 1982, the MBTA opened West Natick station to ease demand at Natick and Framingham stations.[2] The $500,000 station included a 200-space park and ride lot.[4][7] The station should have been built accessible (state accessibility laws date from the 1970s, long before the 1990 Americans with Disabilities Act), but it was not due to a budget shortfall. Accessible mini-high sections were installed around 1993.[8]
In early 2016, the mini-high accessible platforms were closed because the folding platform edges were deteriorated, risking a dangerous collapse like one that happened at North Billerica station in 2015.[9] The MBTA earmarked $4 million to replace them and brought a portable lift to the station to maintain accessibility.[10] The mini-high platforms were demolished in March 2017; new composite platforms opened that November.[9]
The adjacent Boden Lane bridge was closed on October 31, 2019, after it was damaged by brush-clearing equipment.[11] On November 5, MassDOT announced that the bridge would be permanently closed and replaced.[12] The bridge was removed in December 2019; a temporary pedestrian span opened on January 27, 2020.[13][14] Solar panels over the parking lots were added in 2021.[15]
In June 2021, the MBTA issued a $28 million design contract for a project to add a third track from Weston to Framingham, including reconstruction of the three Wellesley stations and West Natick station. The project was expected to cost around $400 million, of which rebuilding West Natick station would be $37 million, with completion in 2030.[16]
