Park Street MBTA Station – Green & Red Line

Coming from Los Angeles my first time here got lost transitioning from the red line to green line with two suit cases coming from Logan airport. Ended up taking an elevator hidden from view after getting off in the middle island. On the return trip took an elevator that reeked of urine. Still better than anything back in Los Angeles.

5 stars for the redline, 0 for the green. Do the outbound ones EVER come in on the correct side?

Park Street is probably one of the busiest transportation stations, aside from South Station. It is always buzzing and people are always frantically running after their trains. It’s a fairly good station. They have good amount of seats at the station for tired travelers. It is also one of the most versatile stations.
This station offers you the red line and green line, which branches to B, C, D, E, and Lechmere for outbound services. Park Street is also a few stops away from major commuter rail stations, such as North Station and South Station.
The worst part of Park Street is during rush hour. Way too many people, especially the red line downstairs. People are literally borderline falling into the tracks because there isn’t enough space for inbound and outbound.
It’s hard to imagine Park Street empty, but if you manage to come here on a Sunday at 8am, it is completely silent and empty. It’s almost scary but it’s the best. Nobody pushing you to get onto the train and nobody to fight over a seat with on the trolley.
It is pretty easy for travelers to get around the station. There are clear signs that tell you where to go if you want to go to B, C, D, or E lines. This is great for people who are not familiar with the MBTA system. Occasionally you will run into foreigners who ask you for directions, but I dont mind because I am always willing to help them!
Only complaint for this station is the air ventilation. Especially during hot humid summer days, waiting in park street for more than 5 minutes is KILLER!

Confusing set of entrances and exits. On the surface, there are LITERALLY six portals. Only one leads to the outbound trains, and that’s like a labyrinth. I expected to find a plate of cheese at the end.
Dirty, dark, and a faint stench of urine complete the atmosphere. I honestly think I’d of been better off walking.

It always seems to be hotter than Hades in here, and god forbid that you should be changing from the red to the green line here and you don’t know where to go, because signs aren’t going to help you! I give it two stars based on the fact that I never feel threatened in any way here when I am by myself. That is (to me) worth an extra star.

One of the most accessible T stations in Boston. Has bus connections and connections to the green line going in all directions.
MBTA employees are helpful — for when I had a question about taking the T like 20 years ago haha. I generally don’t have an issue with this station except for the ceiling which leaks excessively when it’s raining/​snowing. The directions/​signage can get confusing if you don’t know where to go, and I often find myself giving directions, which is fine with me.
Green line: Pay attention to which line you need, whether it’s B, C, D or E. There are 3 platforms. One going to Lechmere, and the other 2 on the other side of the tracks go to Boston College, Cleveland Circle, Riverside, and Heath Street. If you’re going to Fenway, take any train except the «E» line to Kenmore, get off the train, and walk a block to the park on Yawkey Way off of Brookline Avenue. Be sure to get to The Lower Depths for $ 1 Fenway Franks and good beer and tater tots (check my review for that too).
Other than the above, Park Street works. I live on the red line, so it’s a focal point in terms of my day if I am hanging out in the city or working. It’s self-​explanatory and easily dealt with on a busy day. The only annoying thing at rush hour is that both doors are open at the same time to accommodate people on both sides of the red line platforms, and you may or may not get a seat during rush hour.

This review is for the Park Street station itself, not the train lines that run through it. The station is solidly mediocre. It serves as a transfer point between the green and red lines, which makes it one of the busiest stations in the MBTA system.
First, the cons:
* It’s gritty and dark
* It’s overcrowded during rush hours
* On the green line platforms, there are no displays identifying when trains will arrive.
* Minimal amenities — a small souvenir stand and that’s about it.
* The green line trains shriek and squeal with a tone akin to nails on a chalkboard as they come around the curve entering the station.
* The ceiling leaks, and they attempt to place buckets, but on a recent evening a bucket was full and splashing over.
* It’s tremendously confusing and entirely unclear which entrance and set of stairs you need to use to get to the section of the platform where your train will come. You may find yourself running up and down multiple sets of stairs, even returning outside to try a different entrance. Just think of it as a game of Let’s Make a Deal, and it won’t be so bad.
* In the summer, the temperature inside the station is 85 – 90 degrees.
On the positive side, it’s conveniently located in Boston Common, the trains do pass through it (usually — but not always — stopping so passengers can board), there are several charlie card machines for buying tickets or adding value, and because it’s such a busy station there are often MBTA employees to be found if you have questions (though usually they are past the gate where you pay your fare).
Good luck!

If you ever used the T, chances are you’ve been to Park Street station. It’s where the Green line and the Red line intersect, plus it’s located near the State House and the Boston Common, so it’s pretty popular. During the summer, it feels like a sauna. Somehow it feels hotter inside the station than outside, even though you’re underground. It’s one of the oldest stations in the system and it shows. The station has a grimy look to it. It’s been basically the same since I was a kid. Thankfully there are well-​placed signs for the different branches of the Green line, indicating where each line stops.

I know normally people don’t like MBTA due to delay etc. I felt like I live in Boston long enough that somehow I’m used to the train delay. I do like park street you can connect to any green lines from there as well as red lines. However, they do need to train the T staff to be more friendly especially toward visitors from out of town.
Yes they do speak English and Yes they can understand you while you giving me an attitude when I asked you a question on their behalf. It doesn’t matter what part of the world you’re from if you’re not use to the local train system it can be confusing. What is wrong with making them feel welcome instead of turning your face the other way and telling me you going to help them? Yes I am there to help them buy tickets but what is wrong with getting up from the seat and help other who need help as well. I asked one of the MBTA employee lady who sit there whether it would be better for them if they have Charlie Card that way they will save a couple of buck instead of keeping buying ticket at each station especially when some of them don’t want to buy weekly pass. Her first respond was are they all going to live here? I can’t just give out the cards to everyone. I mean come on! I wasn’t aware of Charlie Card can be giving out only to local. I am not asking you to give out to everyone but there are selective few who might save some $ if they have cards. I can understand if you don’t want to give out the card to everyone and the card can always be return before they leave town. But she could have been more friendly in respond. I could be wrong but the amount tourists spent here would outweigh the cost of making the card. The tourists spent here would always help the local economy. I always feel like when you are in town visiting if you meet local who are friendly and who help you save money even just a couple of bucks you always have the memory of the place and more than likely to return. They can always return the card back but seriously it was hard to ask her for the card. I don’t want to see attitude face when giving me the card and yes they can return your precious card.
It’s not going to save the massive debt MBTA is in. It might save MBTA some $ if they start employing people who are helpful instead of people who doesn’t want to get up from the seat. I always remember when I travel which countries the train employees were helpful in term of buying tickets, giving me direction and guess what I always recommend people to go to those locations. 2 stars is based on the experience but normally if you don’t need to ask MBTA employees anything just tab and go I would give it 4 stars for the transportation.

On a good day, I can get to Park Street from Harvard Square in about 15 mins. On a horrible day, I am either standing on the platform or sitting on a delayed train because of either a signal problem, a track problem, or a disabled train. In the past three months, I have arrived at work about 20 minutes late because of the T being unable to properly operate during rush hour. What makes the situation worse is that when you finally arrive at the final destination, the staff are rude, people are pushy, and homeless people greet you at the door. On a good day, I can walk out of the station with my headphones on and walk straight into a coffee shop.

I love Park Street and all its complexity, crowds, and mild chaos (unless I’m in a bad mood, then all bets are off). And it’s actually not that complicated at all once you’ve been there once or twice (or in my case, a good ten to twenty times. I’m a little slow). I mean, does it make SENSE to have to go downstairs to loop across and go back upstairs to get to the Government Center/​North Station Green Line trains if you’re on the B, C, D, and E platform? Of course not. But if you can read, there are signs everywhere so chances are, you’ll be OK. And if you’re not, you could always climb over the random iron fences that run along the middle of the place, though I don’t really recommend it.
Or you could be a bit more rational and ask one of the many locals sitting around listening to their iPods and playing Angry Birds on their smartphones. I have helped more confused tourists at this station than at all of the others combined.
The Red Line platforms are downstairs. You can almost always find musicians playing down there, but it gets a bit old if you come here often enough because it’s the same rotation of people playing the same rotation of songs. Mix it up a bit, will ya? Don’t bother straining to listen over the music for the announcements telling you when a train is approaching/​arriving, because it won’t happen. It seems to be broken, so your best bet is to take a seat and wait for the next train’s arrival to take you completely by surprise.
But I love the hustle and bustle of Park Street Station regardless.

I really want to know what the architects/​engineers were thinking when designing this station: «Let’s take the T station that will be most used by every tourist visiting Boston, and make it as confusing as possible.»
You enter down the stairs, wanting to take the Green Line. So far, so good. Then you realize you are standing on the Lechmere platform, and you have no idea how to get to the platform where you can take the B-​C-​D-​E lines. It is tantalizingly close, across the tracks, with just a wrought-​iron fence dividing you… But you can’t get there from here. Eventually you realize you have to walk to the other end of the station, go downstairs, cross under, and come back upstairs. By this time, your train has probably come and gone.
This is IF you can even figure out what direction you want to take the train. You have the choice between west-​bound and east-​bound… but from this station, the east-​bound line goes essentially north.
The Green Line is slow as molasses, and they don’t run trains frequently enough. This means that when you finally do figure out whether you need to take the B, C, D, or E, it’s guaranteed that you will not be able to get onto the train that you’re waiting for. OK, fine, you think, and resolve to wait for the next one. But by the time that one comes 15 minutes later, there are again far more people gathered than can possibly fit on the train. You’re left with the Sophie’s Choice of either elbowing the old lady with a walker out of the way, or simply facing the fact that you will NEVER get on the train.
Go downstairs to the Red Line platform and it will be an enjoyable wait — this station has the best musicians, since so many tourists go through. But good luck finding the way to the platform. You have to basically walk along the tracks, to the end of the station PAST the exit stairs… You feel like you’re entering the special secret area where only train conductors can go. If you have entered the station via these stairs, you have to turn around and go back behind the stairs to take the Red Line. You get a choice of three staircases to go down, depending on your destination, and the last couple of times I’ve been at Park Street, these signs have been COVERED UP with white plastic. I can only assume that the MBTA decided people were getting too adept at finding their way through Park Street station, and decided to amp up the challenge level.

I go here a lot, and it normally doesn’t smell like urine — so four stars!

As far as I can remember this MBTA station has been under construction. It is the place where I meet most of my associates before a night on the town. It does get very hot during the summer & cold during the winter. The artwork on the green line platform is nice but I wish the red line got one love too. Its the hub of the MBTA & i think they could do more with it.

The oldest subway station in the US and it shows. This place is in serious need of upgrade, but i’ll give it three stars because it has plenty of signage (something other subway systems could learn from. NYC anyone???) and will get you where you’re going.
Be alert because surly Bostonians will let you know if you’re in their way!