# boston subway



## amtrakwolverine (Feb 26, 2009)

how many transfer do i need to make to go from south station to back bay station where my hotel is at. what lines do i take. is it easy to get lost.


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## p&sr (Feb 26, 2009)

KISS_ALIVE said:


> how many transfer do i need to make to go from south station to back bay station where my hotel is at. what lines do i take. is it easy to get lost.


One transfer is all you need. Inside of South Station you can go downstairs directly into the Boston Subway and catch the Red Line northbound (direction "Alewife"). Next stop is Downtown Crossing, where you transfer to the Orange Line (direction "Forest Hills"). From there, the third stop is Back Bay. One fare covers the whole trip. Subway is not very hard to use, and things are pretty clearly labeled. It couldn't hurt to carry a map of the system with you, but maps should be posted in the Stations and on the Trains as well.


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## AlanB (Feb 26, 2009)

Or you could just get off the train at Back Bay, rather than at South Station, and not have to make any transfers on the subway, much less ride it.


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## amtrakwolverine (Feb 26, 2009)

AlanB said:


> Or you could just get off the train at Back Bay, rather than at South Station, and not have to make any transfers on the subway, much less ride it.


too late. getting off at south boston. besides the whole idea is to ride as many trains as possible


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## AlanB (Feb 26, 2009)

Back Bay comes first, you can get off there, even if your ticketed to South Station. No one is going to yell at you for getting off one stop early.

I do that all the time, I ticket to South on Acela, but depending on where I end up staying, many times I get off at BBY. All Amtrak trains stop at both, and since they are less than 1 mile apart, no one checks tickets or cares where you get on or off the train.


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## amtrakwolverine (Feb 26, 2009)

AlanB said:


> Back Bay comes first, you can get off there, even if your ticketed to South Station. No one is going to yell at you for getting off one stop early.
> I do that all the time, I ticket to South on Acela, but depending on where I end up staying, many times I get off at BBY. All Amtrak trains stop at both, and since they are less than 1 mile apart, no one checks tickets or cares where you get on or off the train.


never thought of that. that would work.


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## AlanB (Feb 26, 2009)

Or if you really have your heart set on going all the way, then when you get to South Station, buy a zone 1A commuter RR ticket for $1.70. Then get on the first outbound T commuter train that stops at BBY. No transfers, no up and down lots of stairs with your bags, just a very short commuter ride.

Just be careful, not all commuter lines go through BBY.


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## amtrakwolverine (Feb 27, 2009)

yeah just take the PROVIDENCE/STOUGHTON LINE from south to bby. will the train say which line it is or will the platform tell me


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## AlanB (Feb 27, 2009)

KISS_ALIVE said:


> yeah just take the PROVIDENCE/STOUGHTON LINE from south to bby. will the train say which line it is or will the platform tell me


Or the Worcester, Franklin, or Needham lines; in addition to the Providence or Stoughton Lines.

You have to listen for announcements and watch the Solari board. They also make announcements on the train too. Typically, although not guaranteed during rush hour, trains to BBY leave from the lower numbered tracks.


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## JackieTakestheTrain (Feb 27, 2009)

Hi.

Actually, you can ride the COMMUTER RAIL trains FREE between the South Station and Back Bay stations and vice versa. No need for a ticket.

The trick is knowing which commuter rail train will be at either station when you need it to go to the other. The announcer will say when trains are arriving at either station and going to the other and the track number. If you know specifically when you would be at one station versus the other, you could look at every single commuter rail station and try to coordinate a trip.

If you are traveling on the weekend, remember the commuter rail does not run as frequently, so relying on these trains solely on a Saturday or Sunday to get from South Station and Back Bay is probably not a good idea.

There is a South Station-Back Bay connection train schedule posted at Back Bay in a glass case on the wall next to the announcers' booth. I don't go to South Station frequently enough to know if there is one there but I bet there is. I called the MBTA just now to see if there was a printed version of the schedule and the customer service rep said she would put in a request to have a paper copy mailed to me. If I receive it, I would be happy to scan it and email it to anyone who wants it. You would just need to email me and let me know.

-- Jackie


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## JackieTakestheTrain (Mar 10, 2009)

For anyone interested....

I *did* receive the South Station to Back Bay commuter rail printed schedule in the mail. Again, this is a schedule of all commuter trains that run between these two stations, making it pretty handy without checking each individual commuter rail schedule to see this information.

Since the South Station/Back Bay schedules is not available online, I am happy to make a .pdf and email it to anyone who might wish to have it. Just need to send me your email address.

-- Jackie



JackieTakestheTrain said:


> Hi.
> Actually, you can ride the COMMUTER RAIL trains FREE between the South Station and Back Bay stations and vice versa. No need for a ticket.
> 
> The trick is knowing which commuter rail train will be at either station when you need it to go to the other. The announcer will say when trains are arriving at either station and going to the other and the track number. If you know specifically when you would be at one station versus the other, you could look at every single commuter rail station and try to coordinate a trip.
> ...


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## HP_Lovecraft (Apr 10, 2009)

So there is a "transitioning" MBTA train between BOS and BBY?

Its cheap enough that it hardly seems to matter. Though I can't remember a time I've ever had my ticked pulled between BOS and BBY on the commuter rail.


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## The Metropolitan (Apr 12, 2009)

The other thing you might consider is buying the visitor pass (I think it's called a 7 day Link Pass) when you get to Boston South Station. With that you can ride the entire T bus, subway, and streetcar system, as well as unlimited rides within the inner zone of the commuter rail.


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## Joel N. Weber II (Apr 12, 2009)

The Metropolitan said:


> The other thing you might consider is buying the visitor pass (I think it's called a 7 day Link Pass) when you get to Boston South Station. With that you can ride the entire T bus, subway, and streetcar system, as well as unlimited rides within the inner zone of the commuter rail.


The LinkPass does not include the inner and outer express buses.

If you want to use a LinkPass on the Commuter Rail, it may be necessary to have the LinkPass on a CharlieTicket (the magnetic stripe card) and not a CharlieCard (the smart card). However, if you simply stick money into the machine and don't give it any card, it will spit out a CharlieTicket which should be accepted on the Commuter Rail.

I think the versions of the LinkPass accepted on the Commuter Rail may also work for the Airport-Aquarium-Charlestown ferries.


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