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Fall River station

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Coordinates: 41°42′50″N 71°9′15″W / 41.71389°N 71.15417°W / 41.71389; -71.15417
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Fall River Depot
Fall River station under construction in September 2022
General information
LocationPearce Street east of Davol Street
Fall River, Massachusetts
Coordinates41°42′50″N 71°9′15″W / 41.71389°N 71.15417°W / 41.71389; -71.15417
Line(s)Fall River Secondary
Platforms1 side platform
Tracks2
ConnectionsBus transport SRTA: 2[1]
Construction
Parking513 spaces
Bicycle facilities8 spaces
AccessibleYes
History
Openedc. 1870 (previous station)
Openingmid-2024 (planned)
ClosedSeptember 5, 1958 (previous station)
Previous namesBowenville
Passengers
2030 (projected)390 daily boardings[1]: 2–66 
Planned services
Preceding station MBTA Following station
Freetown
toward South Station
 South Coast Rail Battleship Cove
Phase 2 (2030)
Terminus

Fall River station (Fall River Depot) is an under-construction MBTA Commuter Rail station in Fall River, Massachusetts. The station is being constructed as part of the South Coast Rail project and is expected to open in mid-2024.

History

Former station

The Fall River Railroad opened from Myricks to Fall River on June 9, 1845, and to the Old Colony Railroad at South Braintree in December 1846.[2][3]: 403  They merged as the Old Colony and Fall River Railroad in 1854.[3]: 403  As the Old Colony and Newport Railway, it opened a line from Fall River south to Newport, Rhode Island in 1864.[3]: 416  The Dighton and Somerset Railroad opened in 1866, joining the Fall River mainline at Somerset Junction, north of Fall River.[3]: 393 

Postcard of the 1892-built station

Bowenville station opened in the north part of Fall River around 1870.[4][5][6][7] The railroad changed names again to become the Old Colony Railroad in 1872. The Old Colony constructed a station building at Bowenville, located on the east side of the tracks between Turner Street and Old Colony Street, in 1874.[8] An extension of the Providence, Warren and Bristol Railroad opened over the new Slade's Ferry Bridge on December 5, 1875, connecting to the Fall River mainline north of Bowenville.[2]

A new station designed by Bradford Gilbert opened in 1892 between Lincoln Avenue and Pearce Street, just north of the existing Bowenville station. Named Fall River, it became the main station for the city.[9][10] The station was raised 8 feet (2.4 m) as part of a 1902–1905 project that eliminated eleven grade crossings in the city. [10]

Service to Providence, and to Taunton over the Dighton and Somerset, both ended in 1932.[3]: 172, 395  Newport service ended in 1938 due to the 88 stations case; Ferry Street station was closed until around 1950, leaving Fall River as a terminal.[3]: 416  Fall River service was suspended from 1949 to 1952, and ultimately ended on September 5, 1958.[11]

South Coast Rail

Construction of a retaining wall next to an urban street, with a railroad bridge behind
Retaining wall construction, November 2021

In September 2008, MassDOT released 18 potential station sites for the South Coast Rail project, including Fall River Depot off Davol Street.[12] A 2009 conceptual design called for a single 730 ft (220 m) side platform serving the west track, with a second track allowing freight trains to pass the high-level platform; a two-story parking deck would be located on the west side of the tracks.[13] Plans released as part of the Final Environmental Impact Report in 2013 were nearly identical.[14] A 2009 corridor plan called for mixed-use transit-oriented development around the new station.[15] On June 11, 2010, the state took ownership of the Fall River Subdivision and several other CSX lines as part of a sale agreement.[16]

In 2017, the project was re-evaluated due to cost issues. A new proposal released in March 2017 called for early service via Middleborough by 2024, followed by full service via Stoughton by 2029.[17] The January 2018 Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Report reconfigured the planned parking lot configuration, as part of the previously planned deck site had been developed for use by a business. A parking lot on the west side of the tracks will be constructed during Phase 1, with a possible eastern lot (on the site of an existing retail structure) to be added later.[1]: 44 

The MBTA awarded a $159 million contract for construction of the Fall River Secondary portion of the project, including Fall River station, in May 2020. Service was then planned to begin in November 2023.[18][19] Two former industrial buildings were demolished in 2020 to make room for the station and its parking lot.[20][21] The station was 32% complete by February 2022, with 96% of platform foundations and some retaining walls in place.[22] Construction of the station reached 90% completion in October 2022, with the platform and canopies in place.[23][24][25] Substantial completion of the Fall River Secondary work was announced in December 2022.[26] Opening was delayed to mid-2024 in September 2023.[27]

References

  1. ^ a b c VHB/HNTB (January 31, 2018). "Chapter 2 – Alternatives Analysis". South Coast Rail Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Report. Massachusetts Department of Transportation.
  2. ^ a b Phillips, Arthur Sherman (1945). The Phillips History of Fall River: Fascicle II. pp. 176–178 – via Internet Archive.
  3. ^ a b c d e f Karr, Ronald Dale (2017). The Rail Lines of Southern New England (2 ed.). Branch Line Press. ISBN 9780942147124.
  4. ^ "Correction". Fall River Daily Evening News. June 15, 1870. p. 2 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ^ "Friends Yearly Meeting". Fall River Daily Evening News. June 8, 1871. p. 2 – via Newspapers.com.
  6. ^ Old Colony & Newport Railway and its Connections, New England Lith. Co., 1865–1872 – via Wikimedia Commons
  7. ^ Walling, H.F.; Gray, O.W. (1871). "City of Fall River". Massachusetts State Atlas. Stedman, Brown & Lyon. p. 86 – via Wikimedia Commons.
  8. ^ Bailey, Oakley Hoopes (1877). "City of Fall River, Mass". O.H. Bailey & J.C. Hazen.
  9. ^ "The New Railroad Station, "Fall River"". Fall River Daily Evening News. December 11, 1890. p. 1 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. ^ a b History of Fall River, Massachusetts. Fall River Merchants Association. 1911. pp. 43, 44 – via Internet Archive.
  11. ^ Humphrey, Thomas J.; Clark, Norton D. (1985). Boston's Commuter Rail: The First 150 Years. Boston Street Railway Association. p. 36. ISBN 9780685412947.
  12. ^ "South Coast Rail Fact Sheet: October 2008" (PDF). South Coast Rail. October 2008. Archived from the original (PDF) on August 12, 2017.
  13. ^ "Fall River - Fall River Depot Rail Alternative" (PDF). Massachusetts Department of Transportation. June 30, 2009. Archived from the original (PDF) on October 7, 2011.
  14. ^ "Figure 3.2-28 Fall River Depot Station Conceptual Station Design" (PDF). Volume II: FEIS/FEIR Figures Final Environmental Impact Statement/Final Environmental Impact Report on the South Coast Rail Project proposed by the Massachusetts Department of Transportation. U.S. Army Corps of Engineers New England District. August 2013.
  15. ^ South Coast Rail Economic Development and Land Use Corridor Plan (PDF). Massachusetts Executive Office of Transportation and Executive Office of Housing and Economic Development. June 2009. p. 73. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 7, 2013.
  16. ^ "The Massachusetts Rail Program" (PDF). Massachusetts Department of Transportation. June 2010. p. 7. Archived from the original (PDF) on May 24, 2012.
  17. ^ Dungca, Nicole (March 22, 2017). "State changes gears on Middleborough commuter rail plan". Boston Globe. Retrieved April 10, 2017.
  18. ^ "South Coast Rail Main Line Construction Contract Approved" (Press release). Massachusetts Department of Transportation. May 11, 2020.
  19. ^ Tabakin, Jennifer (May 11, 2020). "MBTA Construction Contract No. K78CN03: Fall River Secondary Commuter Rail Expansion Project" (PDF). Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority.
  20. ^ Roy, Linda (August 6, 2020). "North End industrial site demolished for commuter rail station". South Coast Today.
  21. ^ Winokoor, Charles (October 7, 2020). "Groundwork being laid for Fall River Depot train station". South Coast Today. Retrieved October 13, 2020.
  22. ^ "South Coast Rail Briefing for MBTA Board of Directors" (PDF). Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. February 24, 2022. p. 7.
  23. ^ Goode, Jo (October 12, 2022). "South Coast Rail's Fall River station is 90% complete — here's when trains hit the tracks". Herald News. Archived from the original on November 23, 2022.
  24. ^ "South Coast Rail Fall 2022 Fact Sheet" (PDF). Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. November 2022.
  25. ^ "South Coast Rail Fall River Construction Update" (PDF). Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. October 13, 2022.
  26. ^ "Baker-Polito Administration Celebrates Substantial Completion of $159 Million Contract for South Coast Rail Main Line Construction" (Press release). Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. December 8, 2022.
  27. ^ Medeiros, Dan (September 29, 2023). "South Coast Rail passenger service is being delayed. Here's why, explained in 60 seconds". The Herald News. Archived from the original on September 30, 2023.

Media related to Fall River station at Wikimedia Commons

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