Wedgemere station

File:Wedgemere station, circa 1910.jpg

The Boston and Lowell Railroad (B&L) opened to {{bts|Lowell}} on June 24, 1835. Many of the present stations on the line opened soon after; the B&L opened Bacon's Factory station (soon renamed Bacon's Bridge) at Bacon Street in northwestern Medford by 1846.{{cite web |url=https://www.winchester.us/DocumentCenter/View/6725/Four-Railroad-Depots |title=The Evolution of Winchester's Four Railroad Depots |first=Ellen |last=Knight |date=2021 |publisher=Town of Winchester}}{{cite book |title=Boston's Commuter Rail: The First 150 Years |first1=Humphrey |last1=Thomas J. |first2=Clark |last2=Norton D. |name-list-style=amp |publisher=Boston Street Railway Association |year=1985 |isbn=9780685412947 |pages=54–55}}{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AQbIedq11XsC&pg=PA50 |title=The Directory of the City of Boston |page=50 |publisher=George Adams |year=1850 |via=Google Books}} (That section of Medford became part of Winchester in 1851.) The nearby stone arch bridge over the Aberjona River was destroyed by an ice jam during spring runoff in 1852.{{cite magazine |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=P-c5AQAAMAAJ&pg=RA1-PA64 |title=A Pioneer Railroad and How it was Built |magazine=Medford Historical Register |first=Moses Whitcher |last=Mann |date=July 1909 |volume=12 |issue=3 |publisher=Medford Historical Society |pages=49–67}}{{rp|66}} The station was soon renamed Symmes Bridge, then renamed Mystic in 1858.{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=m1o3AAAAIAAJ&pg=PA18 |title=ABC Pathfinder Railway Guide |page=18 |date=June 1858 |publisher=New England Railway Publishing Company |via=Google Books}}{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9Fo3AAAAIAAJ&pg=PA18 |title=ABC Pathfinder Railway Guide |page=18 |date=September 1858 |publisher=New England Railway Publishing Company |via=Google Books}}{{cite book |url=https://wardmapsgifts.com/products/winchester-massachusetts-1891 |chapter=Winchester: Main St, Common |title=Atlas of Middlesex County, Massachusetts |year=1889 |via=Ward Maps |publisher=Geo. H. Walker & Co.}}{{cite book |title=The Rail Lines of Southern New England |author=Karr, Ronald Dale |publisher=Branch Line Press |year=1995 |isbn=0942147022 |pages=229–232}} After 1887, the B&L was leased to its former rival, the Boston and Maine Railroad, as its New Hampshire Main Line.

{{clear left}}

File:Wedgemere station building from ground level.JPG

By the end of the 19th century, the station was known by its modern name, Wedgemere, after the surrounding neighborhood, and had a small station building on the east (outbound) side of the tracks.{{citation |title-link=:commons:File:Winchester, Massachusetts 1898. LOC 75694610.jpg |title=Winchester |year=1898 |publisher=Robbins |via=Wikimedia Commons}} In the early 1900s, the B&M built a larger station building with an extended canopy on the west side of the tracks, which served for the next half-century.{{cite book |url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/mastatelibrary/8881671746/in/album-72157633791688756/ |chapter=Winchester Plate 29 |title=Atlas of Middlesex County, Massachusetts |volume=2 |year=1906 |publisher=Geo. H. Walker & Co.}}

In the early 1950s, the B&M began planning a project to raise the tracks of the New Hampshire Main and the southern end of the Woburn Branch for a mile through Winchester, eliminating troublesome grade crossings downtown.{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/57216175/the-boston-globe/ |title=Winchester Overpass Cost Boosted to $6,000,000 |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=October 21, 1953 |page=14 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}} Construction began in 1955; boxy two-story brick stations opened at Wedgemere and {{bts|Winchester Center}} in 1957.{{cite book |title=A Field Guide to Southern New England Railroad Depots and Freight Houses |author=Roy, John H. Jr. |publisher=Branch Line Press |year=2007 |isbn=9780942147087 |page=260}} The ticket office in the new station was closed in 1960 after just three years in service; thereafter, passengers bought tickets on the train. The station building hosted a coffee shop from 2008 to 2014.

{{clear left}}

File:Wedgemere station looking outbound.png

From the introduction of Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) funding in 1965 until the mid-2000s, Wedgemere station remained essentially static. The Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 required transit agencies to make certain stations handicapped accessible. A number of high-ridership stations on the MBTA Commuter Rail system were upgraded, but due to its relatively low ridership, Wedgemere was not chosen as a key station for upgrades.{{cite web |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220519112348/https://blog.mass.gov/transportation/mbta/wedgemere/ |archive-date=May 19, 2022 |url=https://blog.mass.gov/transportation/mbta/wedgemere/ |title=Rail Accessibility A Win in Winchester |last=Talbot |first=Gary |publisher=Massachusetts Department of Transportation |work=MassDOT Blog |date=February 12, 2010}} Wedgemere had older low-level platforms, and access from the street was via stairs only. Beginning in 2008, a local family lobbied the MBTA to make the station accessible; in July 2009, the Federal Transit Administration granted the MBTA permission to build mini-high platforms. (Full-length high level platforms would not have been possible because the Lowell Line is a designated freight corridor; full-length platforms cause operational difficulties with freight trains. Wedgemere does not have room for a dedicated freight passing track like Anderson RTC.) In February 2010, the MBTA announced that $2 million in federal stimulus funds had been allotted to the project, part of a grant that also funded construction of the John W. Olver Transit Center and repairs to the Red Line tunnels between Harvard and Alewife.{{cite news |url=http://archive.boston.com/news/local/articles/2010/02/21/winchester_mbta_stations_to_improve_disabled_access/ |title=MBTA to enhance access for disabled |newspaper=Boston Globe |author=Laidler, John |date=February 21, 2010 |access-date=March 5, 2017}}{{cite press release |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220331063751/https://blog.mass.gov/transportation/federal-stimulus/all-fed-stimulus-highway-funds-obligated/ |archive-date=March 31, 2022 |url=https://blog.mass.gov/transportation/federal-stimulus/all-fed-stimulus-highway-funds-obligated/ |title=All Fed Stimulus Highway Funds Obligated |publisher=Massachusetts Department of Transportation |work=MassDOT Blog |date=February 10, 2010}} The work was then intended to be finished by the end of 2010.

File:Wedgemere mini-highs January 2013.JPG

After delays due to concerns over nearby wetlands and the appearance of the ramps from street level, the Town of Winchester granted approval in March 2011.{{cite news |url=http://homenewshere.com/daily_times_chronicle/news/winchester/article_0943c892-25c1-5a0e-bde0-e022685628f7.html |title=One step closer to ADA improvements at Wedgemere |newspaper=Daily Times Chronicle |date=March 14, 2011 |author=Knight, Ellen |access-date=11 February 2013}} In April 2011, the MBTA began soliciting bids for the primary construction work on the station, worth $1.525 million. The scope of work included construction of the mini-high platforms and ramps from street level, as well as adding lighting, rehabilitating the low level platforms, and creating accessible parking spaces.{{cite web |url=http://www.mbta.com/business_center/bidding_solicitations/pdf/D36CN01%20NTB.pdf |title=Notice to Bidders |publisher=Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority |author1=Mullan, Jeffery B. |author2=Davey, Richard A. |name-list-style=amp |date=April 11, 2011 |access-date=February 11, 2013 |archive-date=December 22, 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151222084833/http://www.mbta.com/business_center/bidding_solicitations/pdf/D36CN01%20NTB.pdf |url-status=dead }} After bids came in higher than expected, a $2.503 million contract was awarded in July 2011 with notice to proceed in August.{{cite web|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130701042215/http://www.mbta.com/about_the_mbta/t_projects/?id=25698 |archive-date=July 1, 2013 |url=http://www.mbta.com/about_the_mbta/t_projects/?id=25698 |title=Wedgemere Station |work=Transit Projects |publisher=Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority |url-status=dead }}{{cite web |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151222081858/https://www.mbta.com/business_center/bidding_solicitations/awarded_contracts/?cnumber=D36CN01 |archive-date=December 22, 2015 |url=http://www.mbta.com/business_center/bidding_solicitations/awarded_contracts/?cnumber=D36CN01 |title=Awarded Contract: D36CN01: Wedgemere Station Accessibility Improvements, ARRA FUNDED |publisher=Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority |access-date=February 11, 2013}}

Construction was to be completed in mid-September 2011 ahead of the October deadline for stimulus funds, but a problem with town permitting in early September delayed the completion of the project.{{cite news |url=http://homenewshere.com/daily_times_chronicle/news/winchester/article_92b68320-f77e-11e1-b24c-001a4bcf887a.html |title=Work on ramps at Wedgemere comes to halt |newspaper=Daily Times Chronicle |date=September 5, 2012 |author=Knight, Ellen |access-date=February 11, 2013}} Construction resumed in November.{{cite news |title=Wedgemere station project may finish by January |newspaper=Wicked Local Winchester |author=MacDonald, Evan |date=November 13, 2012}} The mini-high platforms, ramps, and new parking spaces opened on February 1, 2013, making the station fully accessible. Finishing work on platform reconstruction, lighting, and landscaping lasted the spring of 2013, culminating in a reopening ceremony in June.{{cite web |url=https://www.mbta.com/news/2013-06-06/wedgemere-station-now-fully-accessible |title=Wedgemere station is now fully accessible |publisher=Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority |date=June 6, 2013 |access-date=June 6, 2013}}

Until December 2020, a small number of Haverhill Line trains ran via the Wildcat Branch and the inner Lowell Line, making stops including Wedgemere.{{cite news |url=https://cdn.mbta.com/sites/default/files/route_pdfs/2020-fall/2020-11-02-cr-lowell-accessible.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201130015122mp_/https://cdn.mbta.com/sites/default/files/route_pdfs/2020-fall/2020-11-02-cr-lowell-accessible.pdf |archive-date=November 30, 2020 |title=Lowell Line: Fall/Winter Schedule |date=November 2, 2020 |publisher=Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority}}{{cite web |url=https://cdn.mbta.com/sites/default/files/route_pdfs/2021-winter/2020-2021-cr-lowell-reduced-accessible.pdf |title=2020/2021 Reduced Service Schedule: Lowell Line |date=December 14, 2020 |publisher=Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority}} This routing was resumed in April 2021, with the trains no longer making the intermediate stops.{{cite web |url=https://cdn.mbta.com/sites/default/files/route_pdfs/2021-spring/2021-04-05-spring-haverhill-accessible.pdf |title=Haverhill Line 2021 Spring Schedule |date=April 5, 2021 |publisher=Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210405122058/https://cdn.mbta.com/sites/default/files/route_pdfs/2021-spring/2021-04-05-spring-haverhill-accessible.pdf |archive-date=April 5, 2021}}{{cite web |url=https://cdn.mbta.com/sites/default/files/route_pdfs/2021-spring/2021-04-05-spring-lowell-accessible.pdf |title=Lowell Line 2021 Spring Schedule |date=April 5, 2021 |publisher=Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210423161734/https://cdn.mbta.com/sites/default/files/route_pdfs/2021-spring/2021-04-05-spring-lowell-accessible.pdf |archive-date=April 23, 2021}} Until May 2023, {{bts|West Medford}} and Wedgemere were flag stops outside of weekday peak hours. Effective May 22, 2023, they were made regular scheduled stops at all times.{{cite web |url=https://cdn.mbta.com/sites/default/files/media/route_pdfs/batch_6157/CR-Lowell-S3-P3.pdf |title=Lowell Line Fall/Winter Schedule |date=October 17, 2022 |publisher=Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority}}{{cite web |url=https://cdn.mbta.com/sites/default/files/media/route_pdfs/batch_6495/2023-spring-summer-cr-lowell-line.pdf |title=Lowell Line Spring/Summer Schedule |date=May 22, 2023 |publisher=Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority}}{{cite press release |url=https://www.mbta.com/news/2023-05-16/commuter-rail-springsummer-schedule-take-effect-may-22 |title=Commuter Rail Spring/Summer Schedule to Take Effect May 22 |date=May 16, 2023 |publisher=Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority}}

{{Clear}}

{{reflist}}

{{Commons category}}

• [https://www.mbta.com/stops/place-NHRML-0073 MBTA - Wedgemere]
• [https://www.google.com/maps/@42.4448683,-71.1405234,3a,75y,125.3h,89.03t/data=!3m7!1e1!3m5!1sS2QWjOemJuwJ5hZ6wjeKyQ!2e0!5s20190901T000000!7i16384!8i8192 Station from Google Maps Street View]

Category:MBTA Commuter Rail stations in Middlesex County, Massachusetts

Category:Buildings and structures in Winchester, Massachusetts

Category:Former Boston and Maine Railroad stations

Category:Railway stations in the United States opened in the 1840s