Porter (MBTA station)

PORTER PORTER
Outbound Red Line train at Porter
Station statistics
Address	Somerville and Massachusetts Avenue intersection Cambridge, MA
Coordinates	42°23′18.0″N 71°07′08.5″W
Lines	MBTA Commuter Rail:   Fitchburg Line MBTA Subway:   Red Line
Connections	MBTA Bus: 77, 83, 96
Platforms	2 split platforms (Red Line) 1 island platform (Commuter Rail)
Tracks	2 each
Parking	No
Bicycle facilities	34 spaces
Other information
Opened	December 8, 1984
Accessible
Owned by	Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority
Fare zone	1A
Traffic
Passengers (2009)	250 weekday avg.  21.4% (commuter rail)
Services
Preceding station   MBTA   Following station Belmont Center toward Fitchburg Fitchburg Line North Station Terminus Davis toward Alewife Red Line Harvard toward Ashmont or Braintree

Porter is a train station in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It is located at the intersection of Massachusetts Avenue and Somerville Avenue (Porter Square). It also serves portions of Somerville. The station was designed by Cambridge Seven Associates and opened on December 8, 1984. At 105 feet below ground, it is the deepest station in the Boston area. Its facilities include:

Fitchburg Line commuter railroad platform

• A stop on the Boston subway's Red Line
• A stop on the MBTA Commuter Rail Fitchburg Line
• Bus and trolleybus connections at street level, including the Number 77 Massachusetts Avenue bus.
• Bicycle parking
• An unusually deep set of escalators (143 feet long) descending three levels, with fixed stairs next to them. Steps (in descending order of flights): 60+117+22 = 199 total.

Porter Station's unusual depth is due to the MBTA's decision to build the station in rock rather than soft clay, saving time and money in the construction process. Unlike most MBTA subway stations, the platforms are stacked; the inbound platform and track are above the outbound platform and tracks.

The Porter Square article describes nearby attractions.

The station has no automobile parking. It is inadvisable to park in the nearby shopping center and take the train, as they will tow. Somerville residents with permits may be able to park on Somerville Avenue near the station.

Arts on the Line

Main article: Arts on the Line

As a part of the Red Line Northwest Extension, Porter was included as one of the stations involved in the Arts on the Line program. Arts on the Line was devised to bring art into the MBTA's subway stations in the late 1970s and early 1980s. It was the first program of its kind in the United States and became the model for similar drives for art across the country.

Six of the original 20 artworks are (or were) located at Porter station. These works are:

• Gift of the Wind by Susumu Shingu, a 46-foot tall kinetic sculpture with three large red "wings" that move in response to the wind
• Ondas by Carlos Dorrien, a 24-foot tall piece of undulating granite affixed to the station wall both inside the station and outside
• Glove Cycle by Mags Harries, a large number of bronze gloves of varying types and sizes scattered inside the station including on the escalator
• Untitled by William Reimann, six granite bollards with various ethnic designs carved into them
• Porter Square Megaliths by David Phillips, four boulders with large "slices" removed and replaced with bronze casts of the missing pieces
• The Lights at the End of the Tunnel by William Wainwright, a large scale reflective mobile located in the stations Mezzanine. (No longer in station)

Accessibility

Porter Square Station is temporarily not wheelchair accessible due to maintenance projected to last from March 2011 to approximately March 2012. There is a short high platform at the commuter rail tracks (see MBTA accessibility).

External links

• MBTA Commuter Rail and Red Line
• Massachusetts Avenue entrance to Red Line from Google Maps Street View
• Massachusetts Avenue entrance to Commuter Rail from Google Maps Street View