South Station Tower | South Station Air Rights | Downtown

RandomWalk said:
Replace the space frame truss roof over the bulk of the concourse too.
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Like Moynihan. While simultaneously letting people see the new South Station Tower. Mimic the new concourse domes, but with glass, for a sense of continuity.

McGoldrick.Moynihan.Station.01.png
 
You really can't make the space nice without ripping off the roof and replacing it with glass.
 
Stlin said:
The saddest thing is we had a chance at it. The original lease that financed the current headhouse was for was a 35 year term that would have expired on Dec 31 2024 with 2 10 year options. Within 6 months of Baker taking office in 2015, in June 2016 Pollacks MassDOT reissued the lease for a new 99 year term to the same firm that had built the current concourse in 89, Beacon / EOP. A year later in 2017 EOP sells the lease to AAC, who leaves the station in its current state. If they simply hadn't done that, by now we would have a new S. Station operator.

I get that thst was the same timeframe they were finalizing the Hines deal, but yea... while a 99 year ground lease to Hines who are building a tower is appropriate, no sane landlord in their right mind should write something that long for an structure they share and intend to occupy. 20, 30 years in conjunction with a major investment sure, but without it? No one except an active saboteur is so asinine to set up a PPP like that.
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This is why the Feds *should* take over South Station. It's just not going to get any better than *these* Feds, who are water-headed morons, at best.
 
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⚠️Attention all South Station Passengers!

🎫 Commuter Rail fare gates construction will begin the week of September 1st, with the goal to be in operation at South Station by this winter.

Check http://mbta.com/CRgates and the thread below for more info👇

👷Construction will bring minimal impacts to Commuter Rail train service.

🚧Riders will see construction activity in sections of the South Station concourse.

The new Commuter Rail fare gate system will better integrate the Commuter Rail’s network & ticketing system with other Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority - MBTA modes as well as:

✅ Get rid of platform ticket checks
🎫 Improve fare collection
🚆 Create more consistent fare-paying experience across travel modes

🛠️ 40 gates will be installed around the concourse area, including 11 wider, accessible gates that allow room for wheelchairs, scooters, bicycles, luggage, & strollers.

🚶 Passengers will need to have their tickets to enter and exit the tracks at South Station.

➕ This project will eventually include Back Bay and Ruggles Station in 2026.

ℹ️ As the Commuter Rail fare gates project progresses, more information will be shared with our riders to prepare.

Facebook

www.facebook.com www.facebook.com
 
I assume the commuter rail trains will be assigned to those tracks on the left of the concourse, and Amtrak will have the ones to the right? That would make sense, anyway.
 
As of 8/30/25.
 

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stick n move said:
View attachment 66324

⚠️Attention all South Station Passengers!

🎫 Commuter Rail fare gates construction will begin the week of September 1st, with the goal to be in operation at South Station by this winter.

Check http://mbta.com/CRgates and the thread below for more info👇

👷Construction will bring minimal impacts to Commuter Rail train service.

🚧Riders will see construction activity in sections of the South Station concourse.

The new Commuter Rail fare gate system will better integrate the Commuter Rail’s network & ticketing system with other Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority - MBTA modes as well as:

✅ Get rid of platform ticket checks
🎫 Improve fare collection
🚆 Create more consistent fare-paying experience across travel modes

🛠️ 40 gates will be installed around the concourse area, including 11 wider, accessible gates that allow room for wheelchairs, scooters, bicycles, luggage, & strollers.

🚶 Passengers will need to have their tickets to enter and exit the tracks at South Station.

➕ This project will eventually include Back Bay and Ruggles Station in 2026.

ℹ️ As the Commuter Rail fare gates project progresses, more information will be shared with our riders to prepare.

Facebook

www.facebook.com www.facebook.com
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Don't worry, everyone. If they treat this the same way they treat the Red Line, you can just walk through the gates without paying and they will do absolutely nothing.
 
Not that I'm planning on doing it, but where can you sneak in through the gates on the red line?
 
SMCYB said:
Not that I'm planning on doing it, but where can you sneak in through the gates on the red line?
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Field's Corner. Ashmont. Others. Go stand in one of those stations for 10 mins. You'll note that 50% of pax just go through the beeping gates. Employees do nothing about it.
 
bagel4boston said:
I'm still confused why Boston needs fare gates when conductors for the LIRR and Metro North are able to handle all ticketing without them.
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I assume because in the long run it's cheaper to hire machines than people.
 
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Except the conductors will still be around, and they'll still be checking tickets as well.

At North Station they installed the fare gates a few years back, and even today the only thing that has changed is that you went from needing to have your ticket scanned once to having it scanned twice. The gates have been nothing but an inconvenience and waste of money so far.
 
They should be illegal. So many people just walk right through them now anyway as long as it’s still open from the person(s) before.
 
It seems they could also be a fire hazard too. If there's a fire in North Station and hundreds of people are trying to get outside (away from the tracks or toward them, depending on the situation), they may need to go through those gates, and if the gates are locked closed it could be a big problem.
 
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mssrro said:
Except the conductors will still be around, and they'll still be checking tickets as well.

At North Station they installed the fare gates a few years back, and even today the only thing that has changed is that you went from needing to have your ticket scanned once to having it scanned twice. The gates have been nothing but an inconvenience and waste of money so far.
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My understanding is (and I have experienced this myself), on peak use trains, they are so over-capacity and under-staffed that conductors don't have time to check all tickets between stops before they have to run to the doors, or there's so much crowding they can't even make it down the hallway, meaning that some people could theoretically not buy a ticket and get a free ride in cramped, unpleasant conditions.

Clearly, the best solution imaginable to rectify this scenario is to make sure everyone boarding at South/North pre-pays just in case the conductor can't reach them (but of course this only affects boarding from that one station so conductors will still be assigned to try to check every ticket since you have no way of knowing who boarded from where).
 
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