Kendall (MBTA station)

KENDALL
Outbound platform with historic timeline and images from nearby Massachusetts Institute of Technology
Location	Main Street at Broadway Cambridge, Massachusetts
Coordinates	42°21′44″N 71°05′10″W / 42.3623°N 71.0862°W / 42.3623; -71.0862Coordinates: 42°21′44″N 71°05′10″W / 42.3623°N 71.0862°W / 42.3623; -71.0862
Owned by	Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority
Line(s)	Red Line
Platforms	2 side platforms
Tracks	2
Construction
Bicycle facilities	58 spaces
Disabled access	Yes
History
Opened	March 23, 1912
Traffic
Passengers (2013)	15,433 (weekday average boardings)
Services
Preceding station   MBTA   Following station Central toward Alewife Red Line Charles/MGH toward Ashmont or Braintree

Kendall/MIT is an underground rapid transit station on the MBTA Red Line, located at the intersection of Main Street and Broadway in Cambridge, Massachusetts. It is named for the primary areas it serves - the Kendall Square business district and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT). Opened in March 1912 as part of the original Cambridge Subway, Kendall/MIT has two side platforms serving the line's two tracks. The Kendall Band, a public art installation of hand-operated musical sculptures, is located between the tracks in the station with controls located on the platforms. Kendall/MIT station is fully handicapped accessible.

The Cambridge Subway opened from Park Street Under to Harvard on March 23, 1912, with intermediate stops at Central and Kendall. From the early 20th century through the 1970s, the MBTA operated a powerhouse above ground in Kendall Square, including cycloconverters to transform incoming AC electrical power to 600 volts DC power fed to the third rail to run the subway. An old-fashioned cycloconverter consisted of an AC motor coupled to a huge, slowly rotating flywheel coupled to a DC generator, hence the name. With the development of compact modern semiconductor-based power rectifiers, the old electromechanical technology became obsolete. The MBTA powerhouse was demolished, and replaced with an office building located at the convergence of Broadway and Main Street.

The MBTA has renamed the station on several occasions. On August 7, 1978, the station was renamed as Kendall/MIT to indicate the nearby presence of the Massachusetts Institute of Technology. On December 2, 1982, Columbia station was renamed JFK/UMass and Kendall/MIT renamed as Cambridge Center/MIT after the adjacent Cambridge Center development, although most station signs were not changed. On June 26, 1985, the name was reverted to Kendall/MIT.