Nathan and I got on the train at Brigham Circle heading outbound. The train pulled up to a light and waited about 45 seconds for it to change. Finally, we went through the intersection and arrived at the stop just on the other side (a few hundred feet), where Nathan and I ran out of the train as I yelled “THANK YOU!” to the very confused driver. This ride basically epitomizes the street-running section of the E. There really isn’t much to say about these stations – they’re only signs and sometimes a shelter, if you’re lucky – so just enjoy the photos!
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| Welcome to Fenwood Road. And what’s that platform in the background? Why, I do believe that’s Brigham Circle! Geez… |
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| The inbound Mission Park stop, with a 66 getting in the shot. |
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| Both sides of Riverway are visible here. Strangely, it’s the outbound that gets the shelter. |
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| The stop at Back of the Hill…with Heath Street about five feet away in the background. |
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| A train about to round the curve at Riverway. |
Stations: Fenwood Road, Mission Park, Riverway, and Back of the Hill
Ridership: Ohhh, not very high. Not very high at all. Running down the list, Fenwood Road gets 221 riders per weekday, Mission Park gets 548, Riverway has 495, and finally, we have Back of the Hill with a sickly 39 riders – the lowest-ridership station on the entire system.
Pros: The one good thing I can say is that the 39 uses these stops, too. Thus, if the E is being awful (i.e. all the time), you can just get a bus if it happens to come first.
Cons: Um…you do realize these are just bus stops, right? I mean, you’re lucky to even get a shelter at these miserable pieces of junk! Not to mention that the E is so slow over here, since it’s running in mixed traffic. And every time the train makes a stop, it slows everyone down behind it because the train’s in the middle of the street and people have to run out to get into it. At least the 39 pulls over for you, for heaven’s sake!
Nearby and Noteworthy: The scenery is mostly apartments along here, and there isn’t too much to see or visit. Riverway is pretty close to Brookline Village, though, if you feel like taking the slow way there.
Final Verdict: 2/10
Hey, at least some of them have shelters. That’s worth an extra point, right? Geez, I must be in a good mood…
Latest MBTA News: Service Updates
Why would anyone ever use Riverway when Brookline Village (A D Line stop running on a separate right-of-way) is less than a 10 minute walk away? Riverway gets a 2, while Brookline Village gets a freakin 7!
BACK OF THE HILL IS THE WORST "STATION" I HAVE EVER SEEN IT IS LITERALLY 5 FEET AWAY FROM HEATH STREET ,WHO'S STUPID IDEA WAS IT TO HAVE TWO STOPS THAT CLOSE TOGETHER AND BESIDES WHO WOULD USE BACK OF THE HILL OVER HEATH STREET BACK OF THE HILL IS A BUS STOP AND HEATH STREET HAS AN ACTUAL PLATFROM.ALSO BACK OF THE HILL HAS THE WORST RIDERSHIP ON THE ENTIRE SYSTEM SO WHY DOES THE MBTA NOT ELIMINATE THIS STUPID STATION!
Okay so I did some research and according to Wikipedia the only reason this "station" exists is because of the apartment complex that it is named after that serves elderly and disabled people ,but it's still really useless, I mean I sure those people would have no problem going an extra 3 feet to heath street which is HANDICAP ACCESSIBLE mind you ,something back of the hill will never be (at least for the green line) I think the mbta so a least eliminate this stop for the green and make it a 39 only stop ,because the stop is accessible on the 39 because all busses have ramps and they pull up to the curb so you don't have to go in the middle of traffic like you have to do for this section of the green line
Agreed!
oh yeah and I forgot to mention that the Wikipedia page says that it delays riders using heath street which is another reason why the stop is really stupid and the 39 is easier for getting downtown then the E line which is always delayed ,sure the 39 is in traffic for the whole ride and the E line is in it's own right of way for the most part but the green line moves and the pace of a snail and traffic is always faster than it and the 39 also goes all the way to forest hills/arborway which the E line doesn't anymore
Wow, this part of the line really needs fixing. The ridership on these stops are most likely even lower now. Fenwood should be eliminated on both the E line and the 39. It’s close enough to Brigham Circle, and it’s in a dangerous traffic spot. Back of The Hill is an utterly useless stop. It’s within spitting distance from Heath St. In addition to that, Heath Sr and the busses are handi-accesible. Keep Back of The Hill for the 39 bus going inbound only or both inbound/outbound. The T really should look into eliminating Fenwood Rd and Back Of The Hill.
James I use Fenwood Rd every day (using the E or 39 when I’m going inbound, whichever comes first) if they take it away from me I will riot
Back of the Hill, as useless as it might seem is actually somewhat useful as a stop going outbound. Sometimes trains get backed up at Heath street and the operator will tell people they can get off at Back of the Hill instead of waiting for god knows how long for the train ahead to pull out.