Bradford is incredibly close to Haverhill – a quick jaunt across the Merrimack River, and there you are. Yet the stations couldn’t be more different. Haverhill feels urban, with fairly tall buildings in view of the station. Bradford, meanwhile, is very local and tranquil, with mostly trees for surroundings. Let’s take a look.

The entrance from Laurel Ave.

The Laurel Ave entrance is probably the better-used one, at least for pedestrians. It’s the closest entrance to a residential neighborhood, but it seems like the pedestrian connections themselves could be better. Anyway, it’s basically a path that parallels the tracks for a bit to the station.

The near-empty parking lot.

This is one of those Commuter Rail stations that has more parking spaces than it does ridership. As such, Bradford’s 300-space lot can quite easily handle all passengers coming to the station. The parking lot is the other way of entering the station, and it’s probably the only reason anyone would enter on this side – there really isn’t much here except for the lot.

The platform.

Aside from the inbound platform having a few more benches and a longer shelter, both sides of the station are the same. There are some nice rustic-feeling boarding areas with benches, and that’s about it. There isn’t much on the rest of the platform, but the waiting areas are all you need, and they’re great.

A train coming into the station.

Station: Bradford

Ridership: My friends, Jason and Michael, and I were the only people who were waiting for the inbound train here. The station’s ridership is pretty low overall, with 278 inbound riders per weekday. I would imagine all of these people come from local residential neighborhoods – it’s not like the Haverhill lot fills up and people need an alternative.

Pros: This is a more tranquil alternative to Haverhill. I don’t think anyone would actually bother to walk an extra half-mile for just tranquility, but the point is that it’s possible. Bradford’s platform is fantastic, with the great boarding areas being the main highlight. It also has so much parking.

Cons: I can’t say I’m too familiar with Bradford’s topography, but some direct pedestrian walkways from nearby residential neighborhoods would be great. There’s an entrance on Laurel Ave, but the problem is that that street is isolated itself.

Nearby and Noteworthy: Well, the MVRTA’s headquarters is right near the station, if you’re interested in…well, looking at it, I guess. I assume it’s not public. Also, there’s a Commuter Rail layover area here, where you can spot a few trains.

Final Verdict: 8/10
It may not have the bells and whistles of Haverhill, but Bradford is another excellent station. It’s quiet, it’s local, and it’s a nice place to wait for the train. I’m not sure why they decided to build it so close to Haverhill, but I don’t think it slows down travel times too much.

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Okay, it’s pronounced “Hai-ver-ill”. Not “Hai-ver-hill”. Not “Ha-ver-ill”. It’s “Hai-ver-ill”. I just wanted to get that out of the way, in case anyone reading doesn’t know how. Now no one has to worry about embarrassing themselves by mispronouncing the city when trying to buy tickets at North Station. (not that that happened to me…or anything…) Well, anyway, let’s take a look at Haverhill Station.

Here’s where I got off the train, so I guess I’ll start here.

For anyone wondering what I was doing in Haverhill, here’s how it happened. My friends, Jason and Michael, and I wanted to go on an adventure. So we went to North Station and grabbed the first train, which happened to be going to Haverhill. It’s not the most interesting city, but it’s something. Anyway, we disembarked the train onto a boarding platform, which was a nice one. It had benches on it, which was good, since trains were only boarding on the outbound platform at this time. Naturally there are benches on the inbound side, too, for more normal circumstances.

Looking down the platform.

The rest of the platform is great, too. Firstly, it’s elevated on the side facing downtown, which is always nice. There’s even a bench facing downtown further down the platform, should anyone want to do some small-city people-watching. The platform is also lined with some cool old lights, which must look great at night. There’s a fence between the tracks for the most part, but there are pedestrian crossings at either side of the platform.

I love this shelter!

The inbound side of the platform also has a really nice shelter, complete with a clock tower. It has some benches inside, even though the boarding platform would probably be a better place to wait. The shelter also has some newspaper boxes and a few bike spaces.

Both sides of the station’s Washington Street entrance.

From both sides of the platform, there are exits down to Washington Street, the main drag of Haverhill. On the outbound side, it’s a claustrophobic ramp, while the inbound side has a claustrophobic staircase. Still, it’s good that there are direct exits to downtown from the station.

The platform…viewed from above.

The official MBTA parking lot is accessible from the inbound platform. It has 159 spaces, which seems to be more than enough for Haverhill. The MBTA website says this station has no bike spaces, when there is in fact a bike rack here. There are alternatives to both car and bike parking, though.

Behold, the parking garage!

Yes, an alternative to the MBTA lot is the brand-spanking new MVRTA garage, which has a direct connection to Haverhill Station. It offers 315 parking spaces, as well as overnight parking, which the MBTA lot lacks. Plus, the lot has some bike racks on the ground floor. It’s not that many, but it’s more than what the MBTA offers.

A train leaving the station.

And another train…viewed from above.

Station: Haverhill

Ridership: Haverhill’s ridership is pretty average for the Commuter Rail, with about 575 riders per weekday. I feel like these mostly come from local residents – I can’t imagine anyone reverse-commuting out here. Some passengers may come from MVRTA buses, too.

Pros: The platform is fantastic – there’s absolutely nothing wrong with it. This station offers a good amount of parking, both from the MBTA lot and the big garage. There are also MVRTA bus connections here – the buses leave from a terminal a few blocks down Washington Street. I’ll take a look at that in another post.

Cons: Hmm…well, it would be nice if the MBTA acknowledged the big MVRTA garage on its website, but nothing much, other than that.

Nearby and Noteworthy: Downtown Haverhill may not be the most interesting of places, but it does have some restaurants and businesses lined up along Washington Street.

Final Verdict: 9/10
Haverhill is another great Commuter Rail terminal. I think it takes much less to impress me when it comes to Commuter Rail stations, but whatever. Haverhill has a great platform with awesome architecture and a bunch of parking in two different lots. For a Commuter Rail station, this is top notch.

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Why did they paint it salmon? Why did they paint it salmooooooooooon? Waverley used to be at street level, but it was depressed into a trench…with salmon-colored walls. Now, perhaps salmon is your favorite color, but it’s certainly not mine. Yuck.

Looking at the station from above.

The station has shelters on both side, with benches underneath. Waverley isn’t wheelchair-accessible, so the shelters are presumably where you wait. Other than that, the platform has a few wastebaskets, but that’s it. It’s pretty barebones. Also, there are the salmon walls. Blech.

One of the entrances with some bikes in the background.

The station is accessed by some dilapidated staircases with wooden shelters – one for each platform. They lead to a small park that surrounds the station. By small, I mean small, but it’s nice that it’s there. And contrary to what the MBTA website says, there is bike parking here, with a few bike spaces under a shelter.

Unfortunately, I didn’t take the 73.

The station is served by two buses: the 73 and the 554. Whereas the latter only comes on weekdays, 73’s just stream into this station, nonstop. Good schedule, I guess. As for parking, the station website says there’s none, but Waverley does have a lot right next to it. Perhaps it’s a public lot rather than an MBTA one, but it’s parking nonetheless.

A train…viewed from above.

Station: Waverley

Ridership: I’m gonna go outright and say it, this is one of the least-used stations on the Commuter Rail. It only gets 117 inbound riders per weekday, who I assume are mostly locals. It’s interesting how both of Belmont’s stations get low ridership, with Belmont Center only getting 168 inbound riders per weekday.

Pros: Well, it has bike and street parking, which is good. Um…there are bus connections?

Cons: Firstly, it’s not wheelchair-accessible. It would admittedly be hard to make Waverley accessible, but the point stands that it’s not. Oh, also: saaaaaaaalmooooon. It’s ugly.

Nearby and Noteworthy: Aside from some businesses in the station’s immediate vicinity, there isn’t much around Waverley.

Final Verdict: 4/10
I would say this station’s on the same level as Belmont Center. They’re both not accessible, though Waverley has some form of parking while Belmont Center doesn’t. That said, Belmont has an awesome old station building, whereas Waverley has…salmon. I rest my case.

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What a lovely station name. Gosh, what do you think Greenwood’s surroundings are like? Rolling green hills, extending way out into the horizon, covered in beautiful trees…or perhaps a few houses and the back of a bank. The second guess was better…

Well at least there are some trees.

The outbound platform is extremely simple – it’s basically all asphalt. There is a bike rack on one end, but that’s it for amenities. The station’s not accessible, so there are no boarding platforms. On the outbound side, there’s an exit that leads into the parking lot of that aforementioned bank.

And the inbound platform.

The inbound side has more in the way of amenities. For one thing, it has an actual shelter – it’s pretty much a bus shelter, but a shelter regardless. There’s also an open bench, right next to a newspaper box with no newspapers in it. On this side, there’s an exit to a leafy residential area (perhaps that’s where the “green woods” are).

Woah!

It’s worth noting that at the level crossing with Forest Street (technically not part of the station), there’s an old…crossing tender. I don’t know what that means, but it’s a nice little house…thing. Maybe it was used before the level crossing was automated? Perhaps the woods were a little more green back then…

A train leaving the station.

Station: Greenwood

Ridership: This is one of the least-used stations on the Haverhill Line, and actually one of the least-used on the whole Commuter Rail. It only gets 146 riders per day, with most to all of them being locals from the residential areas around.

Pros: Hmm…actually, there isn’t too much to like about Greenwood. Well, there’s ample parking here (76 spaces), and the crossing tender is cool.

Cons: Accessibility is the big issue, of course. I suppose it’s more important to make the next station north, Wakefield, accessible, since it gets more riders, but still. More of an annoyance is the fact that the station’s parking is actually paid street parking that stretches far up Main Street. I can’t imagine it filling up too much, but it can be a long walk to the station from the further spaces.

Nearby and Noteworthy: There’s a business block along Main Street right near the station. Although small, it does appear to have a few restaurants and shops.

Final Verdict: 5/10
I’m sort of giving this station a break, since its ridership is low. Well, “break” as in it gets a 5 instead of a 4. Accessibility shouldn’t be too much of a priority here, since Wakefield is much busier, but Greenwood just isn’t the best station, anyway. And though the surrounding trees are green, I want to see proper green woods, darn it!

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This is the second time the “heights” (or “highlands”, in this case) Commuter Rail station has the most ridership in a town! Unlike Needham Heights, however, which gets very good ridership, Melrose Highlands’ is very low. But also unlike Needham Heights, Melrose Highlands is actually good.

Both platforms.

Melrose Highlands is next to a level crossing with Franklin Street, meaning there might be long periods of waiting for cars while trains stop at the station. The outbound platform is a simple slab of concrete with wastebaskets on it. It does has a high-level boarding platform with a bench (hooray), and the walk to it isn’t that bad.

The inbound platform.

As you would expect, the inbound platform has more amenities. For one thing, it has a screen that lets you know how close the next train is, if it happens to be close. It also has a simple shelter with a few benches underneath. It’s pretty close to the boarding area, so I can imagine people waiting here if the former is too crowded.

Parking!

Melrose Highlands has a small parking lot, with 77 spaces. The parking rate is only 2 bucks, though, so that’s a plus. The station is also served directly by the 131, and the 136/137 is a short walk away. Well, by short, I mean about 8 minutes. Better than 9 minutes, am I right?

A train coming in…

…and leaving.

Station: Melrose Highlands

Ridership: Well, I did mention it has the highest ridership in Melrose. But by “highest ridership in Melrose”, I meant only about 300 per day. Most of these are locals, with very few people coming from buses, I’d imagine.

Pros: This is the only wheelchair-accessible station in both Melrose and Wakefield, which is good for Melrose Highlands, but bad for all those other stations in the towns. It’s a nice station overall, with good boarding areas and a shelter on the inbound side.

Cons: Melrose Highlands could stand to have some more parking, seeing as it’s the busiest station in Melrose, and the only wheelchair-accessible one.

Nearby and Noteworthy: The surroundings are mostly residential, but there are some businesses on Franklin Street and more if you walk to Main Street.

Final Verdict: 8/10
I think the beefed-up score is mostly because of that accessibility. But since this is the only accessible station in Melrose and Wakefield, I feel like it ought to have a bigger parking lot. I only wish the MBTA had the “weekday availability” stats on its website, which could help to see if the lot actually needs to be expanded. Oh well…

Latest MBTA News: Service Updates