Tuesday, May 8, 2007

Crystal Lake T stop


In his announcement that the city is going to purchase 20 Rogers Street and expand the Crystal Lake public beachfront, Alderman Ken Parker asks for suggestions for the site.

If the entry headline didn't give it away already, my suggestion: a T stop at Crystal Lake. I'd make it a stop only during park hours.

I'll bet that Crystal Lake is not so close to the Newton Centre or Newton Highlands T stops that many people travel by T. Add a T stop right at the beach, and (more) people could reasonably use the T.

A T stop would increase the number of Newton residents with access to Crystal Lake, without adding to the traffic or parking in the neighborhood.

Ken?

6 comments:

Chuck Tanowitz said...

Didn't most light rail systems end with "electric parks" way back when? Wasn't that the original reason for Revere Beach and Norumbega Park?

So, from that perspective, it would make complete sense. Provided, that is, it could be built with a limited footprint.

Anonymous said...

The Mayor is putting together an advisory committee that will make recommendations of what to do with the site. I assume that the meetings will be open to the public and that members of the public will be given a chance to offer their comments. Personally, I think adding a Crystal Lake T stop is a great idea which should receive broad support from the community. I hope the community, the Mayor and the MBTA will agree.

Ald. Ted Hess-Mahan

Anonymous said...

I completely agree. As Chuck noted it would seem to require a minimal footprint & I would think a fairly modest budget.

Would it require the train to slow down as it passes through the station, when the stop is not in service? I recall this was/is the case at Science Park (Museum of Science), for example. That might annoy the commuters, but that's just a minor detail.

Cool idea Sean!

Anonymous said...

That's a great idea. I'm a big fan of making Newton more T-friendly, and this would be a perfect way to bring more people in.

Anonymous said...

Hi Sean,

Thanks for the suggestion. I'll raise it in the Crystal Lake Committee and see if it gets any traction.

Regards,

Ken

Nathan Phillips said...

Can we revive this idea?