Kendall/MIT station

{{Infobox station

| style=MBTA |style2=Red

| name=Kendall

| image=Kendall MIT Northbound MBTA Red Line Platform, September 2024.jpg

| image_caption=A northbound train arriving at Kendall/MIT station in 2024

| address=Main Street at Broadway

| borough=Cambridge, Massachusetts

| coordinates = {{coord|42.3623|N|71.0862|W|type:railwaystation_region:US-MA |display=inline,title}}

| line=Cambridge Tunnel

| other={{ric|MBTA|Bus|name=y}}: {{MBTA bus links|Kendall/MIT}}
{{bus icon}} {{MBTA other buses|Kendall}}

| platform=2 side platforms

| tracks=2

| bicycle=58 spaces

| passengers=17,018 (weekday average boardings){{cite web |url=https://mbta-massdot.opendata.arcgis.com/datasets/mbta-ridership-guide |title=A Guide to Ridership Data |publisher=MassDOT/MBTA Office of Performance Management and Innovation |date=June 22, 2020 |page=6}}

| pass_year=FY2019

| opened=March 23, 1912{{NETransit}}

| rebuilt=

| structure=Underground

| accessible=Yes

| services= {{Adjacent stations|system=MBTA|line=Red|left=Central|right=Charles/MGH}}

| other_services_header=Planned services

| other_services_collapsible = yes

| other_services={{Adjacent stations|system=MBTA|header=At Broadway station

| line2=Grand Junction|left2=Massachusetts Avenue|right2=Medford/Gore Street

}}

| former = Kendall (1912–1982)
Cambridge Center/MIT (1982–1985)

| mapframe = yes

| mapframe-marker-color = #{{rcr|MBTA|Red}}

| mapframe-marker = rail-underground

| mapframe-zoom = 13

}}

Kendall/MIT station (signed as Kendall) is an underground rapid transit station in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It is served by the MBTA Red Line. Located at the intersection of Main Street and Broadway, it is named for the primary areas it serves - the Kendall Square business district and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Opened in March 1912 as part of the original Cambridge subway, Kendall/MIT has two side platforms serving the line's two tracks. The Kendall Band, a public art installation of hand-operated musical sculptures, is located between the tracks in the station with controls located on the platforms. Kendall/MIT station is accessible. With 17,018 weekday boardings by a FY2019 count, Kendall/MIT has the fourth highest ridership among MBTA subway stations.

Station design

Kendall/MIT station has two underground side platforms serving the two tracks of the Red Line, which runs approximately east–west under Main Street. The main headhouses are located midblock between Broadway and Ames Street, with smaller entrances further east near Broadway. The main headhouses have elevators for accessibility.{{cite web |url=http://www.mbta.com/uploadedfiles/services/subway/Kendall%20Neighborhood%20Map.pdf |title=Kendall/MIT Station Neighborhood Map |publisher=Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority |date=July 2012 |access-date=19 August 2015 |archive-date=4 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304193634/http://www.mbta.com/uploadedfiles/services/subway/Kendall%20Neighborhood%20Map.pdf |url-status=dead }} The main inbound headhouse has two angled glass entrances and a pair of glass elevators, with an angular canopy supported on thin columns.{{cite web |url=https://www.cambridgema.gov/-/media/Files/CDD/ZoningDevel/SpecialPermits/sp302_303_mit/sp303_MBTAHeadhouse_20190417.pdf |title=Kendall Square - Inbound Station |date=April 17, 2019 |author=Perkins + Will / NADAAA |publisher=City of Cambridge}}

The station is served by {{MBTA bus links/count|Kendall/MIT|lower}} MBTA bus routes: {{MBTA bus links|Kendall/MIT|yes}}. The CT2 stops on Ames Street near Main Street, northwest of the station, while the other routes stop on Main Street adjacent to the main headhouses. The EZRide shuttle service between Cambridge, the CambridgeSide mall, Lechmere station and North Station, also stops on Ames Street.{{MBTA bus links/mapcite}}

=''Kendall Band''=

Between 1986 and 1988, artist Paul Matisse installed Kendall Band, an interactive musical sculpture, at Kendall/MIT. Located between the Red Line tracks at the station, it cost $90,000 to construct under the Arts on the Line program.{{cite news |last1=Daly |first1=Gabriel J. |last2=Velan |first2=Sonam S. |url=http://www.thecrimson.com/article/2006/12/7/t-riders-ring-the-sound-of-science/ |title=T-Riders Ring the Sound of Science |newspaper= Harvard Crimson |date=7 December 2006 |access-date=27 May 2010}} It consists of three musical devices - Pythagoras, Kepler, and Galileo - controlled by levers located on both subway platforms.{{cite news |url=http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2010/05/09/fine_tuning_the_kendall_band_once_more/?page=full |title=Grace notes from the underground |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=9 May 2010 |last=Moskowitz |first=Eric |access-date=19 August 2015}} Although Matisse maintained it for several decades, it ultimately fell into disrepair. A group of MIT students began restoration in 2010, with Pythagoras rendered partially functional in May 2011.{{cite web|title=Kendall Square T station music installation back in working order|url=http://www.wickedlocal.com/cambridge/features/x916853148/Kendall-Square-T-station-music-installation-back-in-working-order#axzz1LP9ovQbd|work=Wicked Local Cambridge|publisher=Cambridge Chronicle |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130928021409/http://www.wickedlocal.com/cambridge/features/x916853148/Kendall-Square-T-station-music-installation-back-in-working-order |archive-date=28 September 2013}}

History

File:Kendall Square headhouse and surface car loop, 1912.jpg

The Cambridge subway opened from Park Street Under to {{bts|Harvard}} on March 23, 1912, with intermediate stops at Central and Kendall. From the early 20th century through the 1970s, the MBTA operated a powerhouse above ground in Kendall Square, including rotary converters (also called cycloconverters) to transform incoming AC electrical power to 600 volts DC power fed to the third rail to run the subway. An old-fashioned cycloconverter consisted of an AC motor coupled to a huge, slowly rotating flywheel coupled to a DC generator, hence the name. Despite the development of compact low-maintenance semiconductor-based power rectifiers, the long-obsolete electromechanical technology still occupied prime real estate in the heart of Kendall Square. The MBTA powerhouse was demolished, and replaced with an office building located at the convergence of Broadway and Main Street.{{citation needed|date=August 2015}}

=Name changes and reconstructions=

File:New inbound headhouse at Kendall MIT station (2), April 2023.jpg

The MBTA renamed the station three times in a seven-year period. On August 7, 1978, the station was renamed as Kendall/MIT to indicate the nearby presence of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. On December 2, 1982, Columbia station was renamed {{bts|JFK/UMass}}, and Kendall/MIT was renamed as Cambridge Center/MIT after the adjacent Cambridge Center development, although most station signs were not changed. There were many complaints that the MBTA had suddenly changed the name without public input, and that the new name would be confused with the next Red Line station at Central Square.{{cite news |title=City Bitties |url=http://www.thecrimson.com/article/1985/3/19/city-bitties-pwhats-in-a-name/ |newspaper=Harvard Crimson |date=March 19, 1985}} On June 26, 1985, the name was reverted to Kendall/MIT as part of a series of station name changes.{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/54291295/the-boston-globe/ |title=T board votes to change the names of some stations |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=July 27, 1985 |first=Douglas S. |last=Crocket |page=26 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}

During the 1980s, the MBTA rebuilt Kendall/MIT and other Red Line stations with longer platforms for six-car trains and with elevators for accessibility. The rebuilt station was dedicated in October 1987 and six-car trains began operation on January 21, 1988. Temporary artworks, including an entire fake cafe, were hosted at the station during the renovation as part of the Arts on the Line program.{{cite news |url=https://www.thecrimson.com/article/1986/10/14/artworks-brighten-t-during-renovations-pthere/ |title=Artworks Brighten 'T' During Renovations |date=October 14, 1986 |newspaper=Harvard Crimson}}

The main southbound headhouse was reconstructed as part of the Kendall Square Initiative development project. Utility work began in July–August 2020, with excavation beginning in October.{{cite press release |url=https://courbanize.com/projects/mit-kendall-square/updates/27939 |title=Construction Update July 24 - August 7 |date=July 23, 2020 |work=Kendall Square at MIT}}{{cite press release |url=https://courbanize.com/projects/mit-kendall-square/updates/28099 |title=Construction Update October 16 - October 30 |date=October 16, 2020 |work=Kendall Square at MIT}} Part of the old headhouse was closed in November 2020 for construction of the interim headhouse.{{cite press release |url=https://courbanize.com/projects/mit-kendall-square/updates/28143 |title=Construction Update November 13 - November 27 |date=November 13, 2020 |work=Kendall Square at MIT}} The temporary southbound headhouse opened on January 22, 2022.{{cite press release |url=https://courbanize.com/projects/mit-kendall-square/updates/29014 |title=Kendall Square Construction Update January 21 - February 4 |date=January 21, 2022 |work=Kendall Square at MIT}}{{cite tweet |number=1485991015257452549 |title=Over the weekend, we opened the Red Line's new Kendall/MIT interim headhouse. The temporary entrance/exit for Ashmont/Braintree service will provide riders accessible connections while the old headhouse is rebuilt thanks to @MIT's transit-oriented development. #BuildingABetterT |user=MBTA |author=Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority}} The permanent headhouse opened on February 11, 2023.{{cite web |url=https://cdn.mbta.com/sites/default/files/2023-02/2023-02-24-1-report-from-the-general-manager.pdf |title=GM Report |page=14 |publisher=Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority |first=Jeffrey |last=Gonneville}}

The main northbound headhouse is also being reconstructed as part of the adjacent 325 Main Street project.{{cite web |url=https://www.cambridgeredevelopment.org/idcp-phase-ii-325-main-street |title=325 Main Street |publisher=Cambridge Redevelopment Authority |access-date=March 30, 2021}} The new glass headhouse will also have redundant elevators, and the roof will be part of an elevated public plaza.{{cite web |url=https://www.dropbox.com/s/fm0y9q52c48ghsy/325%20Main%20Schematic%20Design%20Review%20Resubmission_01252019.pdf?dl=0 |page=83 |title=325 Main Schematic Design Review Resubmission |date=January 7, 2019 |author=Pickard Chilton |publisher=Cambridge Redevelopment Authority}} Work on the headhouse began in July 2022.{{cite web |url=https://www.cambridgema.gov/Departments/publicworks/news/2021/03/kendallsquareconstructionprojects |title=Kendall Square Construction Projects |date=June 29, 2023 |publisher=Cambridge Department of Public Works |access-date=July 24, 2023}} A temporary outbound headhouse, located inside 325 Main Street, was completed in June 2024. The old headhouse was demolished, and steel for the new headhouse assembled, in July 2024.{{cite press release |url=https://www.mbta.com/news/2024-07-30/mbta-makes-significant-progress-expedited-critical-track-work-red-line-removes-nine |title=MBTA Makes Significant Progress on Expedited Critical Track Work on Red Line, Removes Nine Speed Restrictions |date=July 30, 2024 |publisher=Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority}} The temporary headhouse includes an art installation by Mount Holyoke College professor Ligia Bouton entitled "25 Variable Stars: A Temporary Monument for Henrietta Swan Leavitt". It consists of lenticular prints honoring Henrietta Swan Leavitt's discovery of the period-luminosity relation for Cepheid variable stars.{{cite news |url=https://news.harvard.edu/gazette/story/2024/07/how-an-artist-discovered-a-shining-star/ |title=How an artist discovered a shining star |date=July 15, 2024 |access-date=October 21, 2024 |newspaper=Harvard Gazette |first= Anne J. |last=Manning}}{{cite news |url=https://www.thecrimson.com/column/underground-overlooked-art-of-the-red-line/article/2024/10/1/underground-overlooked/ |title=Outbound to the Magellanic Cloud: Ligia Bouton's 'Temporary Monument to Henrietta Swan Leavitt' at Kendall/MIT |newspaper=Harvard Crimson |date=October 1, 2024 |access-date=October 21, 2024 |first=Marin E. |last=Gray}} {{As of|December 2024}}, the new permanent headhouse is anticipated to be completed in August 2025.{{cite web |url=https://cdn.mbta.com/sites/default/files/2024-12/2024-12-06-accessibility-initiatives.pdf |title=Accessibility Initiatives—December 2024 |date=December 6, 2024 |publisher=Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority |page=12}}

=Circumferential service=

File:Grand Junction Railroad under McGovern Institute, August 2015.JPG; this location was also a proposed stop on the Urban Ring service.]]

Kendall/MIT was a proposed stop on the Urban Ring – a circumferential bus rapid transit (BRT) line designed to connect the existing radial MBTA rail lines to reduce overcrowding in the downtown stations.{{cite web |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110708181035/https://www.commentmgr.com/projects/1169/docs/URnews0105c.pdf |archive-date=July 8, 2011 |url=https://www.commentmgr.com/projects/1169/docs/URnews0105c.pdf |title=Urban Ring Phase 2 Fact Sheet |date=January 2009}} Under draft plans released in 2008, new surface-level BRT platforms would have been constructed on Main Street at Kendall/MIT.{{cite web |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170514232004/http://www.massdot.state.ma.us/theurbanring/downloads/Plan_Profile_Drawings.pdf |archive-date=May 14, 2017 |url=http://www.massdot.state.ma.us/theurbanring/downloads/Plan_Profile_Drawings.pdf |title=The Urban Ring Phase 2: Revised Draft Environmental Impact Report/Statement |publisher=Massachusetts Executive Office of Transportation |date=November 2008}} The project was cancelled in 2010{{cite web |url=http://eeaonline.eea.state.ma.us/EEA/emepa/mepadocs/2010/012710em/pn/14.pdf |title=Re: Urban Ring Phase 2, EOEEA #12565 |date=January 22, 2010 |last=Mullan |first=Jeffery B. |publisher=Massachusetts Executive Office of Energy and Environmental Affairs}}

In 2012, the state studied the feasibility of sending some Framingham/Worcester Line trains to North Station via the Grand Junction Railroad, including the possibility of a new commuter rail station at Kendall. The possible station would have consisted of a single platform between Main Street and Massachusetts Avenue, and was estimated to cost $7.5 million.{{cite web |url=https://archives.lib.state.ma.us/bitstream/handle/2452/335555/ocn934710112.pdf |title=Grand Junction Transportation Feasibility Study |page=72 |last=Peterson |first=Scott A. |publisher=Central Transportation Planning Staff |date=July 2012 |access-date=19 August 2015}} After objections from the City of Cambridge over potential traffic problems due to the grade crossings on the Grand Junction, the MBTA declined to pursue implementation of the proposed service. In 2014, it was revealed by the state that the stop would be part of the proposed Indigo Line system with frequent DMU service, but that plan was canceled in 2015 for financial reasons.{{cite news|last=Annear|first=Steve|title=Take A Ride On The MBTA's 'New Indigo Line' In 2024|url=http://www.bostonmagazine.com/news/blog/2014/01/09/massdot-capital-plan-proposal/|access-date=11 March 2014|newspaper=Boston Magazine|date=9 January 2014|archive-date=23 October 2017|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171023004817/http://www.bostonmagazine.com/news/blog/2014/01/09/massdot-capital-plan-proposal/|url-status=dead}}{{cite news |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150727155548/http://www.bostonherald.com/business/business_markets/2015/06/charlie_baker_derails_t_trains |url=http://www.bostonherald.com/business/business_markets/2015/06/charlie_baker_derails_t_trains |title=Charlie Baker derails T trains |archive-date=27 July 2015 |newspaper=Boston Herald |last=Stout |first=Matt |date=20 June 2015}}

A 2019 report indicated that daily boardings at the station would double to 30,000 by 2040, increasing the need for relief service on the Grand Junction and other corridors.{{cite news |url=https://www.bostonherald.com/2019/07/10/red-line-boardings-at-kendall-square-t-stop-to-double-by-2040-new-report-says/ |title=Red Line boardings at Kendall Square T stop to double by 2040, new report says |newspaper=Boston Herald |date=July 10, 2019 |first=Marie |last=Szaniszlo}}

As of 2024, two possible locations for a Broadway station on the Grand Junction Branch are being considered: one north of Broadway and one south of that point. This station, and especially the south of Broadway station, would connect with Kendall/MIT.{{cite web |title=Grand Junction Transit Study |url=https://static1.squarespace.com/static/51f173a6e4b04fc573b07c0c/t/66fdb2837b83d465cbb302c0/1727902345389/CRA_GrandJunctionTransitStudy_10.02.2024.pdf |publisher=Cambridge Redevelopment Authority |page=44 |access-date=31 March 2025 |date=2 October 2024}}

References

External links

[https://www.mbta.com/stops/place-knncl MBTA - Kendall]
Google Maps Street View: [https://www.google.com/maps/@42.3624657,-71.0861073,3a,75y,327.59h,80.9t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1stdctKZn7SasqL9XfafuT-A!2e0!7i13312!8i6656 outbound headhouse], [https://www.google.com/maps/@42.362397,-71.0860522,3a,75y,213.51h,84.81t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sZ_AkI160qhvbv3yJRpGg2Q!2e0!7i13312!8i6656 inbound headhouse], [https://www.google.com/maps/@42.3623826,-71.0850175,3a,75y,100.23h,83.76t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sUKmfUYDMjkc6aMv5fMBWxQ!2e0!7i13312!8i6656 secondary entrances]

Category:Red Line (MBTA) stations

Category:Railway stations in the United States opened in 1912

Category:Massachusetts Institute of Technology student life

Category:Arts on the Line

Category:Railway stations in Cambridge, Massachusetts

Category:1912 establishments in Massachusetts

Category:Railway stations in Massachusetts at university and college campuses

Category:Railway stations located underground in Massachusetts