Welcome…to the least-used station on the MBTA! What? Yes, I know Back of the Hill has fewer riders, but who cares about Back of the Hill? It’s just a sign on a street. And it’s, like, 3 feet away from Heath Street. *Cough* Anyway, Valley Road.
Um…so is the station in that guy’s house? |
As you can see, Valley Road has an unassuming entrance. If that T sign wasn’t there, anyone could just walk past it without noticing. Luckily, it is there, and it leads to this staircase down to the station, rendering it inaccessible for those with disabilities. That said, barely anyone uses this station, so I don’t think it’s too much of a detriment.
The outbound platform. It’s leafy! |
The actual contents of the platform are similar to those of Capen Street. Actually, they’re pretty much the same – bland shelter, bench, and wastebasket on the inbound side, bench and wastebasket on the outbound. But Valley Road is, if you can believe it, even more peaceful than Capen Street. It’s right next to the Neponset River, which makes for a nice view…through a chain link fence. Well, it’s something.
Alright, let’s get out of here. |
Station: Valley Road
Ridership: So yeah, this is the second least-used station on the system, but it still has very few riders. A measly 44 people get on the train here every weekday. What is that, like, 2 people per hour? Yeah, most trains just skip past this one.
Pros: Like Capen Street, Valley Road is very tranquil. Despite having such little ridership, it has a good amount of amenities.
Cons: It’s not accessible, but it would be hard to change that – the staircase to the station is pretty steep.
Nearby and Noteworthy: Are Capen Street’s houses too mainstream for you? Perhaps Valley Road will satisfy your desire to see houses better.
Final Verdict: 7/10
The main issue I have with Valley Road is the accessibility, but there doesn’t seem to be any point in fixing that. I mean, it would be expensive to build a ramp down the hill, plus there wouldn’t be any point – 44 riders per day, may I remind you. Other than that, it’s basically the same as Capen Street, which is fine with me.
Latest MBTA News: Service Updates
As of August 2023, Valley Road is now the least used station on the MBTA, it finally surpassed Back Of The Hill