Washington Street Elevated

Washington Street Elevated
An Orange Line train arriving at Forest Hills in June 1967
Overview
System	MBTA Orange Line
Termini	Tower D Forest Hills station
Stations	6
Operation
Opened	10 June 1901 (Dover-Dudley) 22 November 1909 (Egleston-Forest Hills)
Closed	30 April 1987
Technical
Number of tracks	2
Track gauge	4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm)
Route map Washington Street Subway 1908-1987 Atlantic Avenue Elevated 1901-1938 Tremont Street Subway 1901-1908 Pleasant Street closed 1908 Tower D Dover Northampton Dudley Egleston Green Green Line "E" Branch Arborway closed 1985 Forest Hills This diagram: This diagram:

The Washington Street Elevated was an elevated segment of Boston's Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority subway system, comprising the southern stretch of the Orange Line (named after the original name for a section of Washington St, Orange St.). It ran from Chinatown through the South End and Roxbury, ending in Forest Hills in Jamaica Plain, Boston.

The initial section of the Main Line Elevated opened on June 10, 1901, running from Sullivan Square in Charlestown over the Charlestown Elevated, through the Canal Street Incline into the Tremont Street Subway, and out the Pleasant Street Portal onto the Washington Street Elevated. The initial section of the elevated ran only to Dudley Square, with intermediate stations at Dover and Northampton. The Atlantic Avenue Elevated opened on August 22 of that year, joining the Washington Street El at Tower D Junction.

The El, Boston's first heavy rail metro line, proved extremely popular. The Washington Street Tunnel was opened on November 30, 1908, providing a separate route for the Main Line and allowing use of the Tremont Street Subway for through streetcars. The southern portal of the tunnel connected with the Elevated at Tower D. The Elevated was extended south to Forest Hills on November 22, 1909, with an intermediate station at Egleston to transfer passengers from streetcars serving Roxbury and Dorchester. Although the Elevated was built primarily to replace radial streetcar lines running to downtown, ridership from the areas surrounding the stations proved high, and an infill station at Green Street with fewer streetcar connections was opened on September 22, 1912.