I just reviewed an elevated station, so now let’s look at a sunken one! The next station over from East Weymouth, Weymouth Landing/East Braintree is right on the border of two towns. Also, it’s sunken. Did I mention it’s sunken?

Okay, so it’s not totally sunken. Sorry about that.

Yeah, when I said “sunken”, I basically just meant the ends of the platform, which are under roads. But still, the bright, textured walls of the sunken portions look really nice. As for the sheltered part of the platform, it’s what you’d expect from an Old Colony station: high-level, a bit bland, and with benches and wastebaskets.

The drop-off area.

Right outside the shelter, there are a few little amenities. A sheltered bike area is a nice touch, plus there are a few newspaper boxes out here. The station also has a small car loop for drop-offs and pick-ups, as well as benches under the station shelter facing the loop for people to wait.

The station’s smallest parking lot.

When I was at Weymouth Landing, I thought the small lot above was the only parking the station has. Turns out there’s quite a lot more. Along Quincy Ave (coincidentally where the 225, this station’s bus connection, runs), there’s a sizeable lot, while along Commercial Street, there’s an even bigger one. This all amounts to 290 spaces.

A train leaving the station…

…and heading ’round the bend.

Station: Weymouth Landing/East Braintree

Ridership: Weymouth Landing is the second least-used station on the Greenbush Line, with 375 average riders per weekday – one more person than the least-used station, West Hingham. My guess is that most people opt to use the 225 to Quincy instead, based on how much weekday ridership that bus gets. But that’s for another post…

Pros: There are a bunch of great things about this station. For one thing, the platform is high-level and accessible, and has multiple sheltered portions thanks to the parts that are under roads. The sunken bits of the station look great, with some nice-looking walls. Plus, there’s lots of parking here, a few bike spaces, and a drop-off/pick-up loop.

Cons: The only real con about this station to me is the fact that the parking could use better signage. The lots could be lettered A, B, and C, and there could be signs from the platform directing people to each. It might be easier to find your car that way.

Nearby and Noteworthy: South of this station is a nice-looking block of businesses lining Commercial Street. If you walk far enough, there’s even an independent bookstore! Yeah, this station has some great surroundings.

Final Verdict: 9/10
I guess my prejudice that all Old Colony stations are boring was wrong! Seriously, the shelter may be bland, but I love those walls on the sunken parts of the platform. And this place has some big parking lots, a drop-off/pick-up loop, bike spaces, and a bus shelter for the 225 to make all connections incredibly easy. The parking lots could be signed better, but other than that, this station is near-perfect.

Latest MBTA News: Service Updates