Greater Boston
Greater Boston | |
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Population | 4,411,835 (2,005 est.) |
Greater Boston is the area of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts surrounding the city of Boston. Due to ambiguity in usage, the size of the area referred to can be anywhere between that of the metropolitan statistical area (MSA) of Boston to that of the city's combined statistical area (CSA) which includes the metro areas of Providence, Rhode Island and Worcester, Massachusetts.
By contrast, Metro Boston is usually reserved to signify the "inner core" surrounding the City of Boston,[citation needed] while "Greater Boston" usually at least overlaps the North and South Shores, as well as MetroWest and the Merrimack Valley.
Greater Boston includes the tenth-largest metropolitan area in the United States, home to over 4.4 million people, while the CSA is the nation's fifth largest and includes over 7.4 million people.[1] It is also the 51st most populous metropolitan area in the world.[2][unreliable source?]
Greater Boston has many sites and people significant to American history and culture, particularly the American Revolution, civil rights, literature, and politics, and is one of the nation's centers of education, finance, industry, and tourism, with the ninth-largest Gross metropolitan product in the country.
Definitions
Metropolitan Area Planning Council
The most restrictive definition of the Greater Boston area is the region administered by the Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC).[3] The MAPC is a regional planning organization created by the Massachusetts legislature to oversee transportation infrastructure and economic development concerns in the Boston area. The MAPC includes 101 cities and towns that are grouped into eight subregions. These include most of the area within the region's outer circumferential highway, I-495. The population of the MAPC is 3,066,394 (as of 2000), in an area of 1,422 square miles (3,680 km2),[3] of which 39% is forested and an additional 11% is water, wetland, or other open space.[4]
The eight subregions and their principal towns are: Inner Core (Boston), Minuteman (Route 2 corridor), MetroWest (Framingham), North Shore (Peabody), North Suburban (Woburn), South Shore (Route 3 corridor), SouthWest (Franklin), and Three Rivers (Norwood).
Notably excluded from the MAPC and its partner planning body, the Boston Region Metropolitan Planning Organization, are the Merrimack Valley cities of Lowell, Lawrence, and Haverhill, much of Plymouth County, and all of Bristol County; these areas have their own regional planning bodies.
New England City and Town Area
The urbanized area surrounding Boston serves as the core of a definition used by the U.S. Census Bureau known as the New England city and town area. The set of towns containing the core urbanized area plus surrounding towns with strong social and economic ties to the core area is defined as the Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, MA-NH Metropolitan NECTA.[5] The Boston NECTA is further subdivided into several NECTA divisions, which are listed below. The Boston, Framingham, and Peabody NECTA divisions together correspond roughly to the MAPC area. The total population of the Boston NECTA was 4,540,941 (as of 2000).
- Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, MA NECTA Division (97 towns)
- Framingham, MA NECTA Division (13 towns)
- Peabody, MA NECTA Division (7 towns)
- Brockton-Bridgewater-Easton, MA NECTA Division (Old Colony region) (12 towns)
- Haverhill-North Andover-Amesbury, MA-NH NECTA Division (Merrimack Valley region) (25 towns)
- Lawrence-Methuen-Salem, MA-NH NECTA Division (part of Merrimack Valley region) (3 towns)
- Lowell-Billerica-Chelmsford, MA-NH NECTA Division (Northern Middlesex region) (9 towns)
- Nashua, NH-MA NECTA Division (21 towns)
- Taunton-Norton-Raynham, MA NECTA Division (part of Southeastern region) (6 towns)
Metropolitan statistical area
An alternative definition used by the U.S. Census Bureau, using counties as building blocks instead of towns, is the Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, MA-NH Metropolitan Statistical Area, which is further subdivided into four metropolitan divisions. The metropolitan statistical area has a total population of about 4.4 million and is the eleventh-largest in the United States. The components of the metropolitan area with their 2005 populations are listed below.
- Boston-Cambridge-Quincy, MA-NH Metropolitan Statistical Area (4,411,835)
- Boston-Quincy, MA Metropolitan Division (1,800,432)
- Cambridge-Newton-Framingham, MA Metropolitan Division (1,459,011)
- Essex County, MA Metropolitan Division (738,301)
- Rockingham County-Strafford County, NH Metropolitan Division (414,091)
Combined statistical area
A wider functional metropolitan area based on commuting patterns is also defined by the Census Bureau as the Boston-Worcester-Manchester, MA-RI-NH Combined Statistical Area. This area consists of the metropolitan areas of Manchester, Worcester, and Providence, in addition to Greater Boston. The total population (as of 2005) for the extended region is 7,427,336. The following areas, along with the above MSA, are included in the Combined Statistical Area:
- Worcester, MA Metropolitan Statistical Area (783,262)
- Providence-New Bedford-Fall River, RI-MA Metropolitan Statistical Area (1,622,520)
- Concord, NH Micropolitan Statistical Area (146,681)
- Laconia, NH Micropolitan Statistical Area (61,547)
- Manchester-Nashua, NH Metropolitan Statistical Area (401,291)
Principal cities and towns
Boston metropolitan area
This list has been provided by the Census based on commuter populations, and is generally not what a resident of the area would consider the principal cities of the region.
These, in decreasing order, are the ten largest cities in the Boston NECTA (2006) [1]
- Boston 590,763
- Lowell 103,229
- Cambridge 101,365
- Brockton 94,191
- Quincy 91,058
- Lynn 87,991
- Nashua 87,157
- Newton 82,819
- Somerville 74,554
- Lawrence 70,662
Satellite areas
These larger cities fall within the CSA definition of Greater Boston only
- Fall River
- Fitchburg
- Leominster
- New Bedford
- Taunton
- Brockton
- Manchester
- Providence
- Warwick
- Worcester
Major companies
- Companies along, inside or outside I-495
- 3Com, in Marlborough (Headquarters)
- Abbott Laboratories, in Worcester (Pharmaceutical laboratory)
- Advanced Cell Technology, in Worcester (Research laboratory)
- AMD, in Marlborough
- Analog Devices, in Norwood
- Avid Technology, Inc, in Tewksbury (Headquarters)
- BJ's Wholesale Club, Inc., in Natick (Headquarters)
- Bain & Company, in Boston (Headquarters)
- Bain Capital, in Boston (Headquarters)
- Bose Corporation, in Framingham (Headquarters)
- Boston Scientific Corporation, in Natick, Massachusetts (Headquarters)
- Boston Scientific Corporation, in Marlboro
- Boston Properties, Inc., in Boston, Massachusetts (Headquarters)
- David Clark Company, in Worcester (manufacturer of space suits)
- Diebold, in Marlborough (Regional Headquarters)
- EMC Corporation, in Hopkinton (Headquarters)
- Evergreen Solar, in Marlborough (Headquarters)
- Hewlett-Packard Company, in Marlborough (Regional Headquarters)
- Intel Corporation, in Hudson
- TJX Corporation, in Framingham (Headquarters)
- Red Hat, in Westford (Engineering Headquarters)
- Monster.com, in Maynard, Massachusetts (Headquarters)
- Morgan Construction Company, in Worcester, rolling steel mill technology
- Philips Healthcare, in Andover
- Saint-Gobain, in Worcester
- Reed & Barton, (Factory & Headquarters) Taunton, Massachusetts
- Sepracor, Inc., in Marlborough (Headquarters)
- Staples, Inc., in Framingham (Headquarters)
- TripAdvisor, LLC, in Needham (Headquarters)
- WB Mason, in Brockton (Headquarters)
- Wyman-Gordon, in Grafton, complex metal components and products
- Companies along or inside I-95 (Route 128)
- Akamai Technologies, in Cambridge
- BBN Technologies, in Cambridge (Headquarters)
- Biogen Idec, in Cambridge
- Carl Zeiss SMT, in Peabody (North American Headquarters)
- Dunkin Donuts, in Canton (Headquarters)
- Genzyme Corporation, in Cambridge (Headquarters)
- Genzyme Corporation, in Waltham (R&D)
- IBM, in Waltham
- iRobot Corporation, in Burlington (Headquarters)
- InterSystems Corporation, in Cambridge (Headquarters)
- Haemonetics, in Braintree, Massachusetts
- Meditech, in Westwood (Headquarters)
- Millennium Pharmaceuticals, in Cambridge
- National Amusements, (Parent company of CBS, Viacom and Midway Games), in Dedham (Headquarters)
- Novartis AG, Inc, in Cambridge (Research Headquarters)
- Novell, Inc., in Waltham
- Osram Sylvania in Danvers (Headquarters)
- Raytheon, in Waltham (Headquarters)
- Reebok, in Canton (U.S. Headquarters)
- Sun Microsystems, in Burlington
- Teradyne, in North Reading (Headquarters)
- Major companies inside Boston (Inside I-95 (Route 128))
- Bain & Company (headquarters)
- Bentley Motors (U.S. headquarters)
- The Boston Consulting Group (headquarters)
- Fidelity Investments (headquarters)
- The Gillette Company, now owned by Procter & Gamble (headquarters)
- Houghton Mifflin (headquarters)
- John Hancock Financial Services, Inc, now the United States division of Canada's Manulife Financial
- Liberty Mutual (headquarters)
- New Balance Athletic Shoe, Inc. (headquarters)
- Putnam Investments (headquarters)
- State Street Corporation (headquarters)
Sports
Annual sporting events include:
- The Boston Marathon, which follows a course from Hopkinton to Boston
- The Head of the Charles Regatta
Higher education
A long time center of higher education, the area includes many community colleges, two-year schools, and internationally prominent undergraduate and graduate institutions. The graduate schools include highly regarded schools of law, medicine, business, technology, international relations, public health, education, and religion. Additionally, Phillips Academy, one of the country's premier prep schools, is located in Andover, and boasts several famous alumni including former Associate Justice of the United States Oliver Wendell Holmes, Jr. and former U.S. President George H. W. Bush.
Transportation
See also: Boston transportation
Highways
- Central Artery/Tunnel Project (Interstate 93 within Boston)
- Interstate 95: North to New Hampshire and Maine; south to Providence, Rhode Island and beyond. Largely concurrent with MA-128
- U.S. 1
- Interstate 93: North to New Hampshire; south to Canton
- U.S. Route 3
- Massachusetts Route 2: Northwest and west
- The Massachusetts Turnpike (Interstate 90): West to Framingham, Massachusetts and beyond
- Massachusetts Route 9: Western suburbs
- Massachusetts Route 24: South toward Newport, Rhode Island
- Massachusetts Route 3: Southeast through South Shore to Cape Cod
- Massachusetts Route 128 (I-95/I-93): Circumferential Highway (close to Boston)
- Interstate 495: Circumferential (farther from Boston)
- Route 128 is sometimes regarded as the unofficial boundary of the Greater Boston region, especially to the north and south. When the name Greater Boston is used in a more inclusive sense, I-495 is sometimes regarded as the boundary.
Bridges and tunnels
- Callahan Tunnel
- Sumner Tunnel
- Ted Williams Tunnel
- Thomas P. O'Neill Jr. Tunnel
- Tobin Bridge
- Zakim Bunker Hill Bridge
Airports
- Logan International Airport in Boston
- Manchester-Boston Regional Airport in Manchester, New Hampshire
- T. F. Green Airport in Providence, Rhode Island
- Hanscom Field in Bedford
- Norwood Memorial Airport
- Worcester Regional Airport
- Beverly Airport
Rail and bus
- Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA, The T)
- Red Line: Cambridge–Braintree and Boston (Mattapan)
- Orange Line: Boston (Jamaica Plain)–Malden
- Green Line: Cambridge–Brookline and Newton
- Blue Line: Boston–Revere
- Silver Line South Station–Logan Airport and Downtown–Dudley Square
- MBTA Commuter Rail
- Old Colony Lines serving Plymouth County
- Providence/Stoughton Line serving northern Bristol County, connecting to Providence, Rhode Island
- Fairmount Line shuttle service from South Station
- Franklin Line serving western Norfolk County
- Greenbush Line serving Boston's South Shore
- Needham Line serving Boston suburbs and Needham
- Framingham/Worcester Line serving southwestern Middlesex County, connecting to Worcester
- Fitchburg Line serving northwestern Middlesex County, connecting to Fitchburg
- Lowell Line serving northern Middlesex County
- Haverhill/Reading Line and Newburyport/Rockport Line serving Essex County & Boston's North Shore
- Amtrak service to New York City and Washington, D.C.
- Downeaster service to Maine from North Station
The first railway line in the United States was in Quincy. See Neponset River.
The following Regional Transit Authorities have bus service that connects with MBTA commuter rail stations:
- Brockton Area Transit Authority
- Cape Ann Transportation Authority
- Greater Attleboro Taunton Regional Transit Authority
- Lowell Regional Transit Authority
- Merrimack Valley Regional Transit Authority
- MetroWest Regional Transit Authority
- Montachusett Regional Transit Authority
- Worcester Regional Transit Authority
Ocean transportation
Geography
References
- ^ "Annual Estimates of the Population of Combined Statistical Areas: April 1, 2000 to July 1, 2007" (CSV). 2007 Population Estimates. United States Census Bureau, Population Division. 2008-03-27. Retrieved 2008-04-02.
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(help) - ^ kalavinka (June 26, 2006). "The World's Largest Metropolitan Areas". Lists of Bests. Robot Co-op.
- ^ a b "About MAPC". Metropolitan Area Planning Council. Retrieved 2007-05-14.
- ^ Boston Region MPO (April 12, 2007). "Journey to 2030: Transportation Plan of the Boston Region Metropolitan Planning Organization" (PDF). p. 2-1. Retrieved 2007-05-14.
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(help) - ^ U.S. Census Bureau - Components of New England City and Town Areas