View source for Kenmore station

{{short description|Subway station in Boston, Massachusetts, US}}
{{for|the station in Shaker Heights, Ohio|Kenmore station (GCRTA)}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=February 2025}}
{{Use American English|date=January 2025}}
{{Infobox station
| name = Kenmore
| style = MBTA
| style2 = Green
| image =Kenmore Eastbound MBTA Green Line Platform (1), April 2025.jpg
| image_caption = An inbound train at Kenmore station in April 2025
| address = [[Commonwealth Avenue (Boston)|Commonwealth Avenue]] at [[Kenmore Square]]
| borough = [[Boston]], Massachusetts
| coordinates = {{coord|42|20|56.13|N|71|5|44.19|W|display=inline,title|type:railwaystation}}
| line = [[Boylston Street subway]]
| connections = {{ric|MBTA|Bus|name=y}}: {{MBTA bus links|Kenmore}}
| platform = 2 [[island platform]]s
| tracks = 4
| bicycle = 8 spaces
| passengers = 7,655 (weekday average boardings)<ref name=fy2019counts>{{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=8}}</ref>
| pass_year = FY2019
| opened = October 23, 1932<ref name=netransit />
| rebuilt = 2005–2010
| structure = Underground
| accessible = yes
| services = {{Adjacent stations|system=MBTA
|line1=Green|type1=B|left1=Blandford Street|right1=Hynes Convention Center
|line2=Green|type2=C|left2=Saint Mary's Street|right2=Hynes Convention Center
|line3=Green|type3=D|left3=Fenway|right3=Hynes Convention Center
}}
| other_services_header = Former services
| other_services_collapsible = yes
| other_services = {{Adjacent stations|system=MBTA|line=Green|type=A|left=Blandford Street|right=Auditorium|note-mid=Discontinued 1969}}
| mapframe = yes
| mapframe-marker-color = #{{rcr|MBTA|Green}}
| mapframe-marker = rail-light
| mapframe-zoom = 13
}}

'''Kenmore station''' is an underground [[light rail]] station on the [[MBTA]] [[Green Line (MBTA)|Green Line]], located under [[Kenmore Square]] in the [[Fenway/Kenmore]] neighborhood of [[Boston]], Massachusetts, United States. It is served by the [[Green Line B branch|B]], [[Green Line C branch|C]], and [[Green Line D branch|D]] branches of the Green Line. The station has two [[island platforms]], one for each direction. Kenmore is the primary station for [[Fenway Park]], which is {{convert|1000|feet}} to the south. The station opened on October 23, 1932 as a one-station extension of the [[Boylston Street subway]] to relieve congestion in the square. It was renovated for [[accessibility]] in 2005–2010.

==Station layout==
[[File:MBTA route 60 bus at Kenmore station, September 2018.jpg|thumb|left|A route 60 bus at Kenmore in 2018]]
Kenmore station has four tracks serving two [[island platform]]s; the northern platform serves outbound passengers on all lines, while the southern platform serves all inbound trains. The B branch uses the inner tracks, while the C and D branches use the outer tracks. West of the station, the B branch crosses the C/D branches at a [[flying junction]]. The C and D branches split at a [[flat junction]] (Beacon Junction) further to the southwest. The Kenmore Loop connects the outer tracks, allowing inbound C and D trains to reverse direction without entering the main subway. Not normally used for revenue service, the loop is used occasionally during service disruptions.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.mbta.com/diversions/green-line-closure-travel-options |title=Green Line Closure Travel Options |date=December 15, 2024 |publisher=Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20241218215116/https://www.mbta.com/diversions/green-line-closure-travel-options |archive-date=December 18, 2024}}</ref>

The fare mezzanine is located over the middle of the platforms, with stairs and escalators from the platforms. Passageways lead to the exits on the north and south sides of Kenmore Square. An escalator and stairs lead to the busway, which is in the middle of the square. One elevator connects the south sidewalk to the fare mezzanine level, another connects the fare lobby to the outbound platform, and a third connects the busway to the inbound platform via the fare lobby.

As the last station in the subway before it splits into surface lines, Kenmore is the terminal for [[MBTA bus]] routes {{MBTA bus links|Kenmore|yes}}.{{MBTA bus links/mapcite}} During track work and service disruptions on the three branch lines, substitute bus service is often provided from Kenmore.<ref name=2019buses>{{cite web |url=https://www.mbta.com/projects/fenway-portal-project/update/green-line-d-bus-shuttles-january-march-2019 |title=Green Line D Bus Shuttles, January–March 2019 |publisher=Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority |date=January 9, 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190114071816/https://www.mbta.com/projects/fenway-portal-project/update/green-line-d-bus-shuttles-january-march-2019 |archive-date=January 14, 2019}}</ref>
{{clear left}}

==History==
[[File:Construction of Kenmore station, 1930.jpg|thumb|left|Kenmore station under construction in 1930]]
On January 2, 1923, some off-peak trips of the {{bts|Lechmere}}–[[Pleasant Street station (BERy)|Pleasant Street]] shuttle were extended through the [[Boylston Street Subway]] to the surface station at Kenmore; all-day service began on October 10.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/52214396/the-boston-globe/ |title=Large Gains Shown by Elevated Road |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=December 17, 1922 |page=7 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/52220671/the-boston-globe/ |title=Lechmere-Kenmore Train Service All Day |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=October 5, 1923 |page=10 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref> Most trips were extended along the [[Green Line C branch|Beacon Street line]] to {{bts|Washington Square}} on December 14, 1929.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/52221048/the-boston-globe/ |title=Added "L" Service on Beacon-St Line |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=December 13, 1929 |page=19 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref> The Washington Street service was cut back to Kenmore in June 1930 but resumed that September.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/52222222/the-boston-globe/ |title=Several Changes in "L" Service Effective Today |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=June 7, 1930 |page=9 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/52226295/the-boston-globe/ |title=Crash of Trolleys Blocks Governor Sq |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=July 25, 1930 |page=8 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref> On February 7, 1931, Commonwealth Avenue and Beacon Street service was extended from Park Street to Lechmere, and the existing shuttle services to Lechmere were replaced with Kenmore–Park Street shuttles.<ref name=formative>{{cite journal |title=Boston's Main Line El: The Formative Years 1879-1908 |first=George Jr. |last=Chasson |journal=Headlights |publisher=Electric Railroader's Association |volume=49 |year=1987 |editor=Lonto, Arthur J. |pages=25–26}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/38891556/the_boston_globe/ |title=Lake St, Reservoir, to Lechmere trains |date=February 5, 1931 |newspaper=Boston Globe |page=7 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref>

The subway station opened on October 23, 1932, replacing the former Kenmore Incline – whose portal archway can still be seen east of Kenmore Square – and the surface station. The Commonwealth Avenue and Beacon Street services – now the [[Green Line B branch|B]] and [[Green Line C branch|C]] branches – were routed through the station from its opening day. The Kenmore cutback was replaced with a [[pocket track]] at {{bts|Blandford Street}}.

The Commonwealth Avenue line was planned to be eventually converted to use [[high-level platform|high-platform]] metro stock (like the other subway lines), and was to move into a tunnel under Commonwealth Avenue, while the Beacon Street line was to use the [[short turn]] loop rather than continuing into the Boylston Street subway. Streetcar passengers would make a [[cross-platform transfer]] to subway trains, similar to the then-recently-opened [[Ashmont station]]. The streetcar tracks were placed on a wooden structure in the station and at the surface incline pending the future tunnel extension.<ref name=Cudahy>{{cite book|last=Cudahy|first=Brian J.|title=Change at Park Street Under; the story of Boston's subways|year=1972|publisher=S. Greene Press|location=Brattleboro, Vt.|isbn=978-0-8289-0173-4|url-access=registration|url=https://archive.org/details/changeatparkstre00cuda}}</ref> Over the years, it became clear that the Commonwealth Avenue line was unlikely to be converted to heavy rail service. In the 1980s, the wooden structure was removed and the cavity was filled with dirt and concrete.<ref name=century>{{cite book |title=Tremont Street Subway: A Century of Public Service |url=https://archive.org/details/tremontstreetsub0000clar |url-access=registration |via=Internet Archive |last1=Clarke |first1=Bradley H. |last2=Cummings |first2=O.R. |year=1997 |publisher=Boston Street Railway Association |isbn=0938315048}}</ref>{{rp|44}}

Bus service to Kenmore began in 1933 as replacement for the [[Ipswich Street line]].<ref>{{cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/annualreportofb1933bost_0/page/10/mode/2up |title=Fifteenth Annual Report of the Public Trustees of the Boston Elevated Railway for the Year Ending December 31, 1933 |year=1934 |publisher=Boston Elevated Railway |page=11 |via=Internet Archive}}</ref><ref name=lastdays>{{cite magazine |publisher=Boston Street Railway Association |magazine=Rollsign |title=Fifty Years Ago... The Last Days of Cypress Street Carhouse |date=March–April 1984 |first=Richard |last=Barber |pages=3–7 |volume=21 |issue=3/4}}</ref> Buses originally stopped at the curb, which required them to cut across multiple lanes of traffic to loop from inbound to outbound. In early 1939, the Chamber of Commerce proposed a busway in the center of the square, with direct access to the station mezzanine below.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/52879516/the-boston-globe/ |title=C. of C. Proposes Traffic Project at Kenmore Sq. |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=January 6, 1939 |page=28 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref> Mayor [[Maurice J. Tobin]] initially supported the plan, but soon refused to allow the city to pay for it.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/52879526/the-boston-globe/ |title=Kenmore Bus Terminal Bill Favored by Mayor |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=March 9, 1939 |page=10 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/52879610/the-boston-globe/ |title=Tobin Against Paying for New Busway |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=April 3, 1939 |page=20 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref> The proposal was raised again in 1943, and Tobin awarded a $24,063 contract on June 28.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/52879800/the-boston-globe/ |title=Rep. Desmond Fails to Have Lowell Utility Rate Scale Investigated |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=March 17, 1943 |page=13 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/52879791/the-boston-globe/ |title=Boston Firm to Build Kenmore Sq. Busway |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=June 28, 1943 |page=3 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref> The busway, which had a concrete platform and a wooden shelter, opened along with a direct stairway to the mezzanine on November 4, 1943.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/52879803/the-boston-globe/ |title=Kenmore Busway Station Open Today |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=November 4, 1943 |page=8 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref><ref>{{cite magazine |title=This Time in History |page=14 |magazine=Rollsign |date=November–December 2018 |volume=55 |issue=11/12 |publisher=Boston Street Railway Association |issn=0035-7898}}</ref>

===MBTA era===
[[File:Kenmore Square, April 1968.jpg|thumb|left|The new busway shelter in 1968]]
Service on the Highland branch (now the [[Green Line D branch|D branch]]) began on July 4, 1959. Until its shutdown in 1969, the [[Green Line A branch|A branch]] to [[Watertown Yard]] shared the B-branch tracks, running along Commonwealth Avenue to [[Packard's Corner]], where it branched off onto Brighton Avenue.<ref name=netransit /> A $314,300 reconstruction of the busway and $342,000 in station modernization work began in 1967.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/52880198/the-boston-globe/ |title=New Busway to Beautify Kenmore Sq. |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=May 4, 1967 |page=12 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref> The new busway shelter had red brick walls with a fluted concrete-and-plastic canopy; an escalator from mezzanine to busway was added.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/52880203/the-boston-globe/ |title=Something New in Kenmore Square |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=February 23, 1968 |page=2 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref> The busway work was finished in April 1968, with the modernization completed in 1970.<ref name=chronicle>{{cite book |url=https://archive.org/details/chronicleofbosto00mass |title=A Chronicle of the Boston Transit System |year=1981 |publisher=Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority |via=Internet Archive |page=8}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/52880214/the-boston-globe/ |title=Now It's HeaT With the Big T |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=April 10, 1968 |page=11 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref> The work included the addition of abstract murals depicting neighborhood scenes on the station signs.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/38354995/the-boston-globe/ |title=Art from underground |first=Jessica |last=Alonso |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=April 5, 1977 |page=20 |via=Newspapers.com}} {{open access}}</ref><ref name=durso>{{cite thesis |url=https://dspace.mit.edu/handle/1721.1/66801 |title=Subway Spaces as Public Places: Politics and Perceptions of Boston's T |last=Durso |first=Holly Bellocchio |date=June 2011 |publisher=Massachusetts Institute of Technology |type=MCP |page=55|hdl=1721.1/66801 }}</ref>

The station was closed for two months in 1996, after the [[Muddy River, Massachusetts|Muddy River]] overflowed its banks, completely submerging the platform and some of the mezzanine.<ref name="MBTA Flood">{{cite news | author = Julie Masis | url =http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2007/08/26/rivers_revival_is_more_than_a_pipe_dream/ | title = River's revival is more than a pipe dream | publisher = [[The Boston Globe]]| access-date =29 August 2007 | date=26 August 2007}}</ref><ref name="MBTA Flood 2">{{cite web |title=The Green Line Flood of 1996 |access-date=29 August 2007 |date=15 November 1995 |author=Scott Moore |author2=George Chiasson |author3=Jonathan Belcher  |work=NETransit |url=http://members.aol.com/netransit8/flood/flood.html |archive-date=25 July 2008 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080725075644/http://members.aol.com/netransit8/flood/flood.html}}</ref> During the closure, substitute service was provided by commuter rail trains between [[Riverside (MBTA station)|Riverside]] and South Station.<ref name="netransit">{{NETransit}}</ref> A similar flood previously occurred on October 6, 1962, requiring closure of the station for five days.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://bostonglobe.com/metro/2012/11/18/mbta-greets-first-long-delayed-south-korean-rail-cars/I58jypCDRHVHYVbuuTd4CI/story.html |title=Starts and Stops: MBTA receives first of long-delayed rail cars |author=Moskowitz, Eric |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=18 November 2012 |access-date=18 November 2012}}</ref><ref>{{cite book |last=Clarke |first=Bradley H. |title=The Boston Rapid Transit Album |publisher=Boston Street Railway Association |year=1981 |location=Cambridge, Mass. |page=16}}</ref> In 2019, the MBTA installed steel doors at the Fenway portal to prevent future flooding.<ref name=2019buses />
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===Renovation===
[[File:Outbound elevator in Kenmore station lobby, July 2021.jpg|thumb|left|The elevator to the outbound platform, one of three installed during the 2005-2010 renovation]]

The MBTA began its [[Green Line (MBTA)#Light Rail Accessibility Program|Light Rail Accessibility Program]] in 1996.<ref name=audit>{{cite report |title=Official Audit Report – Issued June 16, 2014: Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, For the period January 1, 2005 through December 31, 2012 |date=June 16, 2014 |url=https://www.mass.gov/files/documents/2016/08/ww/201305833a.pdf |publisher=Auditor of the Commonwealth}}</ref>{{rp|30}} Design for renovations to make Kenmore [[MBTA accessibility|accessible]] began in May 1996, with construction then expected to last from 2002 to 2004.<ref name=audit />{{rp|14}}<ref name=nov2007 /> Preliminary designs for a conical glass-covered busway shelter to replace the old rectangular shelter were released in 2001.<ref name=nov2007>{{cite news |url=http://archive.boston.com/news/local/articles/2007/11/24/problems_set_back_kenmore_makeover/?page=full |title=Problems set back Kenmore makeover |date=November 24, 2007 |first=Tania |last=deLuzuriaga |newspaper=Boston Globe}}</ref> Separately, the south entrance to the station was moved inside the [[Boston University]]-funded Hotel Commonwealth during its 2002-03 construction.<ref name=butoday>{{cite news |url=http://www.bu.edu/articles/2013/tracing-the-changing-face-of-kenmore-square/ |title=Tracing the Changing Face of Kenmore Square |date=January 24, 2013 |first1=Patrick L. |last1=Kennedy |first2=David |last2=Keefe |newspaper=BU Today}}</ref> A $22.7 million construction contract was ultimately issued on November 10, 2004, with construction starting in January 2005.<ref name=audit />{{rp|9}}<ref>{{cite press release |url=https://www.mbta.com/news/2005-03-17/construction-begin-kenmore-square-station |title=Construction To Begin At Kenmore Square Station |date=March 17, 2005 |publisher=Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority}}</ref> Temporary bus stops on Beacon Street were used during construction.<ref>{{cite web |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20050531011155/http://www.mbta.com/traveling_t/transitupdates.asp |archive-date=May 31, 2005 |url=http://www.mbta.com/traveling_t/transitupdates.asp |title=Transit Updates |date=May 30, 2005 |publisher=Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority}}</ref>

Work included construction of the busway shelter, raising the platforms, and addition of three elevators and three escalators.<ref name=april2009 /><ref name=audit />{{rp|31}} The project also involved streetscape improvements with trees and brick sidewalks, intended to make Kenmore Square resemble Beacon Hill and the Back Bay as a break from its rough reputation.<ref name=butoday /><ref name=nov2007 />

The work was originally to be completed in early 2007, but delays mounted. A lawsuit settled by the MBTA in 2006 required changes to how accessibility renovations were designed.<ref name=april2009>{{cite news |url=http://archive.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2009/04/05/next_stop_all_aboard/?page=full |title=Next stop: All aboard |newspaper=Boston Globe |date=April 5, 2009 |first=David |last=Abel}}</ref> Previously undocumented utilities delayed excavation, and keeping the station open during construction presented difficulties.<ref name=nov2007 /> Two sets of stairs had to be kept open during the baseball season, which was prolonged when the Red Sox went to the playoffs in 2005, 2006, 2008, and 2009.<ref name=nov2007 /><ref name=audit />{{rp|10}} The metal frame of the shelter was erected in 2006, but the fasteners for the glass had to be redesigned, delaying progress by several months.<ref name=nov2007 /> By November 2007, the project was projected to be completed in late 2008 – almost two years late – with the cost increased to $32 million.<ref name=nov2007 />

The station ultimately became accessible in January 2010.<ref name=audit />{{rp|30}}<!--says January 2013, probably a typo--><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.mbta.com/uploadedfiles/Documents/Schedules_and_Maps/Rapid%20Transit%20w%20Key%20Bus.pdf |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100331134447/http://www.mbta.com/uploadedfiles/Documents/Schedules_and_Maps/Rapid%20Transit%20w%20Key%20Bus.pdf |archive-date=March 31, 2010 |title=Rapid Transit/Key Bus Routes Map v.6 |date=January 2010 |publisher=Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority}}</ref> The total cost was $50.6 million; the original base contract had increased from $22.7 million to $40.7 million, almost entirely because of change orders for which the MBTA was at fault.<ref name=audit />{{rp|8, 30}} Art panels featuring Red Sox players on station signs were unveiled at a ribbon-cutting ceremony on April 22, 2010.<ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.flickr.com/photos/massdot/4545237165/ |title=MBTA Kenmore Station, April 22, 2010 |date=April 22, 2010 |publisher=Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority |via=Flickr}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/37722088/the_boston_globe/ |title=Kenmore station upgrades done, finally |date=April 25, 2010 |page=B2 |newspaper=Boston Globe |first=Eric |last=Moskowitz |via=Newspapers.com}}{{open access}}</ref>

== References ==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
{{Commons category}}
* [https://www.mbta.com/stops/place-kencl MBTA – Kenmore]
* Google Maps Street View: [https://www.google.com/maps/@42.3491763,-71.0956259,3a,75y,334.7h,76.47t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1seHGiAsKkn196vf4yAhhSbg!2e0!7i13312!8i6656 Commonwealth Avenue entrance], [https://www.google.com/maps/@42.3487896,-71.0956458,3a,75y,160.02h,74.57t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sTuh4-wH9Ea6JH30JVoClDQ!2e0!7i13312!8i6656 Beacon Street entrance], [https://www.google.com/maps/@42.3488559,-71.0949773,3a,75y,306.72h,73.8t/data=!3m6!1e1!3m4!1sELRhLdbpI1FuU5YsD9VAIQ!2e0!7i13312!8i6656 busway]

{{MBTA Subway Stations}}

[[Category:Green Line (MBTA) stations]]
[[Category:Railway stations located underground in Boston]]
[[Category:Railway stations in the United States opened in 1932]]
[[Category:Fenway–Kenmore]]