The Needham Line is a branch of the MBTA Commuter Rail system, running west from downtown Boston, Massachusetts through Roxbury, Jamaica Plain, Roslindale, West Roxbury, and the town of Needham. The second-shortest line of the system at just 13.7 miles (22.0 km) long, it carried 4,881 daily riders in October 2022. Unlike the MBTA's eleven other commuter rail lines, the Needham Line is not a former intercity mainline; instead, it is composed of a former branch line, a short segment of one intercity line, and a 1906-built connector.
An outbound Needham Line train at Bellevue station in 2018
Needham Center station in 1904
Needham Junction station, built in 1906
Highland station in 2012 with its 1980s-built mini-high platform
The MBTA Commuter Rail system serves as the commuter rail arm of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority's (MBTA's) transportation coverage of Greater Boston in the United States. Trains run over 394 mi (634 km) of track to 134 stations. It is operated under contract by Keolis, which took over operations on July 1, 2014, from the Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad Company (MBCR).
An outbound Lowell Line train at Anderson/Woburn in 2023
A train at North Scituate – a typical suburban station with a full-length high-level platform
A CSX freight train at Readville station
Commuter Rail tickets in the form of CharlieTickets purchased at fare vending machines and ticket booths (left) and paper tickets purchased on-board (right).
