Some information from Larry Shaw: The Ashmont-Mattapan “High Speed” Line or also known as
the M-Line in Boston and Milton MA is considered to be part of the MBTA's Red
Line, even though it uses different equipment (vintage streetcars) and passengers have
to change at Ashmont. It is the only MBTA line to run through a cemetery. The line
opened on August 26, 1929. The term 'high speed line' is vestigial, as the route
is neither characterized by a fully dedicated, grade separated right-of-way,
nor by high-speed rolling stock.
The Ashmont-Mattapan Line follows
the original right-of-way of the passenger and freight steam railway line that opened in
December 1847 as the Dorchester and Milton Branch Railroad. That line later became part
of the Old Colony Railroad and then the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad after
1893. The steam-powered trains were discontinued in 1927 and the line was closed for
two years while it was being modified for streetcar service. There was a debate at
that time whether or not to continue the same subway trains from Boston to Ashmont
and on to Mattapan without a need for passengers to switch to streetcars at Ashmont.
Apparently, the added cost of full-scale subway service along the remainder of the
route was considered to be too high. The right-of-way is owned by the MBTA and
has only two at-grade crossings on its 2.6-mile route.
All of the following pictures are courtesy John V. Engleman, the best
and most knowledgeable transit fan I know!
Rear end shot of 3087. Trolley catchers on all Boston
PCCs were mounted above the rear windows to prevent riders and pole-snatchings.
This began with the original car, 3001, a St. Louis car from the original Brooklyn PCC order.
Two cars on the ready track at Mattapan prior to evening rush hour.
At peak times a maximum of six cars may be on the line, providing about 4 minute service. Sundays only see two cars.
Car 3087 in the "shop". This car is reported to be the best of the bunch.
Arriving at the new Ashmont Station. This station is a very poor replacement
for the old covered station.
All these photos of the cars were taken before the new air conditioning units were added to the roof.
The Red Line subway cars can be seen on the tracks below.
Car 3087, the oldest of the bunch. Built almost, if not, alongside 7407 at the Pullman plant in Worcester, Mass. in 1944.
This is where the cars are maintained at Mattapan for everything except major repairs. Open
ended building with a pit. No heat, no A.C., no doors. Having
worked on the Baltimore LRV's, it's no wonder only half the cars are in service :-) - Todd.
Car 3230, the last to get rebuilt and the only one not to have wings. Only about
half the cars are serviceable at any one time, it seems. This one had not yet entered
service when this picture was taken as it was not finished.
Car #3263 at the Mattapan Station.
Interior shot facing forward.
Interior of Mattapan-Ashmont PCC. very reminiscent of 7407 as they were
built at the same plant within months of each other, with car 3087 possibly
at the same time.
These cars never run with both banks of lights on. I had to turn the
right side lights on for the picture.
The operator was okay with it but the starter in the shack ahead of the car went nuts.
I love trains, and I love signals. I am not an expert. My webpages reflect what I find on the topic of the page. This is something I have fun with while
trying to help others.
Please Note: Since the main focus of my two websites is railroad signals, the railfan guides are oriented towards the signal fan being able to locate them.
For those of you into the modeling aspect of our hobby, my
indexa page has a list of almost everything railroad oriented
I can think of to provide you with at least a few pictures to help you detail your pike.
If this is a railfan page, every effort has been made to make sure that the information contained on this map and in this railfan guide is correct. Once in a while,
an error may creep in :-)
My philosophy: Pictures and maps are worth a thousand words, especially for railfanning. Text descriptions only get you so far, especially if you get lost or
disoriented. Take along good maps.... a GPS is OK to get somewhere, but maps are still better if you get lost! I belong to AAA, which allows you to get
local maps for free when you visit the local branches. ADC puts out a nice series of county maps for the Washington DC area, but their state maps do not have the
railroads on them. If you can find em, I like the National Geographic map book of the U.S..... good, clear, and concise graphics, and they do a really good job
of showing you where tourist type attractions are, although they too lack the railroads. Other notes about specific areas will show up on that page if known.
Aerial shots were taken from either Google or Bing Maps as noted. Screen captures are made
with Snagit, a Techsmith product... a great tool if you have never used it!
By the way, floobydust is a term I picked up 30-40 years ago from a National Semiconductor data book, and means miscellaneous
and/or other stuff.
Pictures and additional information is always needed if anyone feels inclined to take 'em, send 'em, and share 'em, or if you have something to add or correct.... credit
is always given! Please be NICE!!! Contact info is here
Beware: If used as a source, ANYTHING from Wikipedia must be treated as being possibly being inaccurate, wrong, or not true.