Symphony station (MBTA)

Symphony
An outbound train at Symphony station in May 2026
General information
LocationMassachusetts Avenue at Huntington Avenue
Boston, Massachusetts
Coordinates42°20′34″N 71°05′06″W / 42.34277°N 71.08495°W / 42.34277; -71.08495
LineHuntington Avenue Subway
Platforms2 side platforms
Tracks2
Connections MBTA bus: 1, 39
Construction
Structure type
Underground
AccessibleNo
History
OpenedFebruary 16, 1941[1]
RebuiltMay 2026–Fall 2030
Passengers
FY20191,646 daily boardings[2]
Services
Preceding station MBTA Following station
Northeastern University
toward Heath Street
 Green Line Prudential
toward Medford/​Tufts
Location

Symphony station is a temporarily closed underground light rail station in Boston, Massachusetts. It is normally served by the E branch of the Green Line, part of the MBTA subway system. The station is located under the intersection of Massachusetts Avenue and Huntington Avenue at the border of the Fenway–Kenmore and South End neighborhoods. It is named after the nearby Symphony Hall.

The station opened on February 16, 1941, as part of the Huntington Avenue Subway, which replaced surface streetcar tracks on part of Huntington Avenue. By 2026, Symphony was one of a small number of MBTA subway stations that were not accessible. Utility work for accessibility renovations began in 2023. After delays due to bids coming in higher than expected, a design and construction contract was issued in 2025. The station temporarily closed for about three years beginning May 30, 2026, to allow the work to take place. The renovations are expected to be completed in 2030.

History

Opening

An outbound train at the station in 1941

The station opened February 16, 1941, as part of the Huntington Avenue Subway, which was a Works Progress Administration project that eliminated streetcars from Boylston Street and Copley Square in order to ease congestion. The tunnel ran from just west of Copley to just east of Opera Place, with intermediate stations near the major performance halls at Mechanics and Symphony.[1]

Unusually for subway stations, the inbound and outbound tracks of the station are widely separated. The Huntington Avenue underpass was constructed at the same time as the station, with lanes for motor vehicles passing under Massachusetts Avenue at track level between the inbound and outbound platforms of the station. A sub-passage connected the two platforms; it was sealed off in the early 1960s when the MTA converted the station to no longer need employees present. Each platform had two entrance/exit stairways on opposite sides of Massachusetts Avenue, each of which split into a pair of stairways to street level.[3]

In August 1978, the MBTA board authorized $91,750 for new glass entrance shelters for the station.[4] Around that time, as part of the construction of the Symphony Plaza Towers, the stairways serving the inbound side were realigned, with each stairway from the station connecting to a single angled surface stairway rather than the original two. From January 3, 1981 to June 1982, the station was closed due to budget cuts.[1][5]

Around 1973, the MBTA closed the fare collection booth at the station at night due to robberies, requiring passengers to pay on board trains instead.[6] The fare collector was replaced with a token machine in 1994.[7][8] The CharlieCard electronic fare collection system was installed at Symphony in 2006, making it fare-controlled at all operating hours.[9][10]

Renovations

An entrance to a underground station
The existing entrances have only stairs and are not accessible.

By 2026, Symphony was one of a small number of MBTA subway stations – along with Bowdoin, Hynes Convention Center, and Boylston – which were not accessible. Renovations were planned as part of the Light Rail Accessibility Project to make Symphony station fully accessible. The renovations include two elevators to each platform, platform modifications, and changes to other station elements to meet Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 specifications. Planning proved difficult due to the number of historic structures in the area, as well as utility and code issues. Design reached 15% (conceptual) level in September 2011.[11]

Plans presented in July 2017 added emergency exits and restrooms as well as the accessibility renovations.[12] The MBTA issued a $6 million design contract in August 2019.[13] Design reached 75% in March 2021; station design was completed in early 2022, with utility design completed midyear.[14][15] The project was split into two construction phases in 2022. Utility work was bid in August–September 2022.[16] In December 2022, the MBTA was awarded a $66.6 million Federal Transit Administration grant to fund the renovations.[17][18]

Utility relocation work began in April 2023, with station work expected to begin a year later and last into 2026.[19] In April 2024 the MBTA issued an solicitation for bids under the traditional design-bid-build procurement model.[20] In June 2024, the MBTA reported that "[b]ids received far exceeded the estimated project cost and allocated budget", forcing re-evaluation of the project.[21] The low bid was $119.9 million versus the MBTA estimate of $70.9 million.[22] The MBTA reissued the solicitation using the construction manager at risk (CMAR) model in September 2024 with an expected contract value of $71 million.[23] A construction industry lobbying group criticized the change to a CMAR model, which the MBTA had only used three times previously, and for re-bidding the project at the same cost without design changes.[22]

Notice to proceed was given to the construction manager Suffolk in February 2025.[24] In May 2025, the MBTA issued a change order to the construction manager, adding $14.9 million to the contract for construction at the unrelated Foxboro station, which was later be determined unlawful by the Massachusetts Attorney General.[25] By December 2025, pre-construction design and planning work was expected to be completed in February 2026. The station was planned to temporarily close beginning in March 2026 for construction, with work to be completed by fall 2029.[26] The MBTA approved a $151 million guaranteed maximum price for construction in February 2026.[27] Construction began during a closure of the entire E Branch from May 30 to June 5, 2026, following which the station remained closed for renovations. The closure is expected to last 35 months (until mid-2029).[28][29] The station will not be fully accessible immediately upon reopening, as the elevators are not expected to open until fall 2030.[30]

References

  1. 1 2 3 Belcher, Jonathan. "Changes to Transit Service in the MBTA district". Boston Street Railway Association.
  2. ↑ "A Guide to Ridership Data". MassDOT/MBTA Office of Performance Management and Innovation. June 22, 2020. p. 8.
  3. ↑ Metropolitan Transit Authority (July 13, 1960), Symphony Station: General Plan
  4. ↑ "MBTA leases 60 cars". Boston Globe. August 8, 1978 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. ↑ "Bowdoin, Symphony T stations closed today". Boston Globe. January 3, 1981 – via Newspapers.com. (second page)
  6. ↑ "MBTA may end Shawmut station collector at night". The Boston Globe. February 28, 1973. p. 58 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. ↑ Palmer, Thomas C. Jr. (December 29, 1995). "Empty tollbooths to test T on crime". The Boston Globe. p. 24 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. ↑ Palmer, Thomas C. Jr. (December 31, 1993). "MBTA token machines in offing". The Boston Globe. p. 33 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ↑ "What stations have the new fare collection equipment?". Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. Archived from the original on March 17, 2006.
  10. ↑ "What stations have the new fare collection equipment?". Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. Archived from the original on June 24, 2006.
  11. ↑ "Accessibility Upgrades at Symphony, Hynes and Wollaston Stations". Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. Archived from the original on January 25, 2014.
  12. ↑ "MBTA Symphony Station Accessibility Improvements" (PDF). Thornton Tomasetti. July 26, 2017.
  13. ↑ "Symphony Station Accessibility Improvements Project: MBTA Contract No. A26PS02" (PDF). Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. August 12, 2019.
  14. ↑ "Symphony Station Accessibility Improvements: Virtual Public Meeting" (PDF). Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. October 21, 2021.
  15. ↑ "System-Wide Accessibility Initiatives—May 2022" (PDF). Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority Department of System-Wide Accessibility. May 2022. p. 4.
  16. ↑ "System-Wide Accessibility Initiatives—December 2022" (PDF). Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority Department of System-Wide Accessibility. December 6, 2022. p. 4.
  17. ↑ "All Stations Accessibility Program FY22-23 Projects". Federal Transit Administration. December 19, 2022.
  18. ↑ "MBTA Receives Over $66 Million in Federal Funding for Accessibility Improvements at Symphony Station" (Press release). Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. December 20, 2022.
  19. ↑ "Symphony Station Accessibility Improvements: Utility Relocation" (PDF). Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. March 2023.
  20. ↑ "Notice to Bidders - MBTA Contract No. A26CN03" (PDF). mbta.com. Retrieved June 4, 2026.
  21. ↑ "Accessibility Initiatives—June 2024" (PDF). Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. June 25, 2024. p. 4.
  22. 1 2 Sobey, Rick (September 28, 2024). "Delayed MBTA renovation project will cost much more than estimated: Construction Industries of Massachusetts". Boston Herald. Archived from the original on October 8, 2024.
  23. ↑ "Public Announcement of Readvertisement of Request for Qualifications for Construction Manager at Risk Services: Symphony Station Improvements Project, Boston, MA, Contract No. A26CN06" (PDF). Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. September 11, 2024.
  24. ↑ "CMAR Symphony Station Improvements Project, Boston, MA (Re-advertisement)". Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. February 19, 2025. Archived from the original on February 20, 2025.
  25. ↑ Polk, Justin (December 10, 2025). "In re: Contract No. A26CN06" (PDF). Commonwealth of Massachusetts – Office of the Attorney General. Archived from the original (PDF) on December 23, 2025. Retrieved December 19, 2025.
  26. ↑ "Accessibility Initiatives—December 2025" (PDF). Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority Department of System-Wide Accessibility. December 2, 2025.
  27. ↑ Dunlevy, Gwen (February 26, 2026). "MBTA Construction Contract No. A26CN06R Symphony Station Improvements Project" (PDF). Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority.
  28. ↑ "Construction for Major Accessibility Improvements at Symphony Station Begins June 6" (Press release). Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. May 6, 2026.
  29. ↑ "MBTA Successfully Completes Latest GLTPS Work on Green Line E Branch" (Press release). Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. June 8, 2026.
  30. ↑ Wigfall, Dane (May 18, 2026). "Symphony Station Improvements: Public Information Meeting and Open House: Preconstruction Project Update" (PDF). Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. p. 21.

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