Red Line (MBTA)

The Red Line is a <a href="/facts/Rapid_transit/bbhkQbAW">rapid transit</a> line operated by the <a href="/facts/Massachusetts_Bay_Transportation_Authority/wGhuXeFp">Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority</a> (MBTA) as part of the <a href="/facts/MBTA_subway/l9M34Pvo">MBTA subway</a> system. The line runs south and east underground from <a href="/facts/Alewife_station/my8lG4pk">Alewife station</a> in <a href="/facts/North_Cambridge%2c_Massachusetts/doKo9ey7">North Cambridge</a> through <a href="/facts/Somerville%2c_Massachusetts/v9y5XsC3">Somerville</a> and <a href="/facts/Cambridge%2c_Massachusetts/k9UMIJ7U">Cambridge</a>, surfacing to cross the <a href="/facts/Longfellow_Bridge/NCs6sWl4">Longfellow Bridge</a> then returning to tunnels under <a href="/facts/Downtown_Boston/QI9T1N7c">Downtown Boston</a>. It continues underground through <a href="/facts/South_Boston/Fc187s8e">South Boston</a>, splitting into two branches on the surface at <a href="/facts/JFK%2fUMass_station/ueo5QukV">JFK/UMass station</a>. The Ashmont branch runs southwest through <a href="/facts/Dorchester%2c_Boston/fwXSHj4j">Dorchester</a> to <a href="/facts/Ashmont_station/rhGprCDI">Ashmont station</a>, where the connecting <a href="/facts/Light_rail/5Sr1FjHu">light rail</a> <a href="/facts/Mattapan_Line/YA819SXn">Mattapan Line</a> (shown as part of the Red Line on maps, but operated separately) continues to <a href="/facts/Mattapan_station/NAXSmbI9">Mattapan station</a>. The Braintree branch runs southeast through <a href="/facts/Quincy%2c_Massachusetts/2BYxlKjT">Quincy</a> and <a href="/facts/Braintree%2c_Massachusetts/KSRAYduR">Braintree</a> to <a href="/facts/Braintree_station_(MBTA)/e60C1mtu">Braintree station</a>.
The Red Line operates during normal MBTA service hours (all times except late nights) with six-car trains. The 218-car active fleet consists of three orders of cars built in 1969–70, 1987–89, and 1993–94. A 252-car order from <a href="/facts/CRRC/kFwHM7hN">CRRC</a> is being built from 2019 to 2024. The Red Line is fully <a href="/facts/Grade_separation/NIs0csjl">grade-separated</a>; trains are driven by operators with <a href="/facts/Automatic_train_control/TdAWGAmG">automatic train control</a> for safety. Cabot Yard in South Boston is used for heavy maintenance and storage; yards at Alewife, Ashmont, and Braintree are also used for storage. All 22 Red Line stations are fully <a href="/facts/MBTA_accessibility/KsT6CQBp">accessible</a>. Averaging 119,000 weekday passengers in 2023, the Red Line has the highest ridership of the MBTA subway lines.
The <a href="/facts/Boston_Elevated_Railway/nxLeTVuL">Boston Elevated Railway</a> opened its Cambridge tunnel between <a href="/facts/Harvard_station/zgte97Ga">Harvard</a> and <a href="/facts/Park_Street_station_(MBTA)/VNbsX5JI">Park Street</a> in 1912. It was extended south as the Dorchester Tunnel to Washington (now <a href="/facts/Downtown_Crossing_station/141FbkBM">Downtown Crossing</a>) in 1915, <a href="/facts/South_Station_(subway)/U2L5R9nv">South Station</a> in 1916, <a href="/facts/Broadway_station_(MBTA)/v7bmYBsd">Broadway</a> in 1917, and <a href="/facts/Andrew_station/x4vjQnLq">Andrew</a> in 1918. The Dorchester extension added three stops to <a href="/facts/Fields_Corner_station/9vTA36wQ">Fields Corner</a> in 1927 and two more stops to Ashmont in 1928. Charles (now <a href="/facts/Charles%2fMGH_station/MYtKSwyV">Charles/MGH</a>) was added as an <a href="/facts/Infill_station/LP1LHhD2">infill station</a> in 1932. The newly formed MBTA assigned colors to its subway lines in 1965, with the Cambridge–Dorchester line becoming the Red Line. The MBTA added the three-station South Shore Line to <a href="/facts/Quincy_Center_station/GY1eMj39">Quincy Center</a> in 1971; it was extended to Braintree in 1980, with <a href="/facts/Quincy_Adams_station/j0sXXHoF">Quincy Adams</a> added as an infill in 1983. The Red Line Northwest Extension, originally planned to run to <a href="/facts/Arlington_Heights%2c_Massachusetts/ofGs64Rd">Arlington Heights</a> or <a href="/facts/Massachusetts_Route_128/0s6jSBtG">Route 128</a>, opened to <a href="/facts/Davis_station_(MBTA)/nAlmV76N">Davis</a> in 1984 and Alewife in 1985.

Red Line (MBTA) open-in-new

Red Line (MBTA)