Forest Hills Upper Busway On Washington Street Razed Over The Weekend
By Richard Heath on October 4, 2015
Last updated on October 5, 2015
Barletta Heavy Division Inc. brought in the enormous tracked demolition claws and jackhammers at 2 a.m. Saturday. By 5 a.m., the first canopy sections crumpled, and by the end of the day, the upper busway on Washington Street opposite Asticou Road was down.
By Sunday afternoon, the surface busway was open again for passengers, but this will only be used for about a year. A new busway is being built where the old MBTA parking lot used to be, set on a platform that will extend over the Hyde Park Avenue parking lot.
The changes are part of the massive Casey Arborway project that is changing the face of Forest Hills and Jamaica Plain. Here’s the scene Monday morning as commuters saw a whole new view of the station entrance from the upper busway.
Canopy-free upper busway at Forest Hills Station, Oct. 5, 2015.
The pillars for this platform will be built this fall. Here are some more photos from the weekend’s demolition:
The wrecking claws began ripping down the upper MBTA busway Saturday at 5 a.m.The Washington Street busway was built as part of the new Forest Hills Station between 1985 and 1987. It was designed by Charles Redmon of Cambridge Seven Associates
The new busway will be built at the end of the deck over the tracks in this location. This area has now been completely leveled and gradedThe new Washington Street busway and canopy will be located in the former MBTA parking lot. Site layout and engineering was done by HNTB, and designed by URS architects and engineers (now Aecom Corp. of Los Angeles). Louis Free is the chief designer. It is in the 30 percent design stage.Rendering of the new Washington Street busway. URS architects and engineers (now Aecom Corp.)The busway will extend on a platform over the Hyde Park Avenue parking lot. Foundations for the supports have been completed and 47 posts will be built this fall. URS architects and engineers (now Aecom Corp.)
