"Large Car Yard Designed for Dorchester Extension" (1929)

ELECTRIC RAILWAY JOURNAL · Vol. 73, No. 9 · March 2, 1929 · pp. 362-365.

Large Car Yard Designed for Dorchester Extension

Looking south from Ashmont Station, showing the Codman Street yard in the background. The platform, shown in the center of this view, allows the trainmen to change ends quickly and facilitates the cleaning of cars.

Storage space now provided for 60 rapid transit cars. Additional tracks may be installed later. Complete yard signal system facilitates handling of large number of trains which end runs at this point.

South of the Ashmont Station on the Dorchester Rapid Transit Extension of the Boston Elevated Railway is the new Codman Street yard. After trains terminate their runs at this station they continue south, either going to the by-pass track between Ashmont station and the Southern Artery, Codman Street, or continuing over the bridge spanning the Southern Artery to the Codman Street yard. If a train is to go back into service immediately the by-pass track only is used. If it is to be laid up, if additional cars are to be attached to the train, if the length of the train is to be reduced, or if inspection or other work is to be done in connection with it, the train goes to the yard.

The relay track south of Ashmont station is parallel to the two main-line tracks. Between the northbound and southbound track is a raised wooden platform installed for the purpose of allowing the train crew to change ends quickly and to facilitate the cleaning of the train that is to go back into service immediately. It is shown in the bottom illustration on page 364.

All of the switches and signals between Ashmont station and the entrance to the Codman Street yard are controlled from a tower, indicated as Q in the accompanying diagram of the yard. This section is well lighted by overhead illumination, and suitable plank walks have been provided so that the trainmen, inspectors and others can safely and readily walk between the yard and the station.

The Codman Street yard is located on a large tract of land containing about 1-1/2 acres, just south of the new Southern Artery and west of the high-speed trolley tracks that will later lead to Mattapan. The yard was located here for three reasons: First, because the area available was sufficient; second, because practically all of the land was already owned by the city of Boston, this area having been used formerly as a stone quarry from which broken stone for the repair of the streets was obtained; third, it was located in the proper position south of, or beyond, the terminal station, which corresponds to the location of all storage yards on the rapid transit lines of the Boston Elevated Railway system. The company has found that for economical and efficient operation of rapid transit trains or cars the yard must be located beyond the terminal station. In recent studies for rapid transit facilities, suggestions have been made that terminal yards be located on the in-town side of the terminal station. The operating and engineering staffs of the Boston Elevated Railway, however, favor the other plan on the basis of actual experience when the yard at Forest Hills was located on the in-town side of the station.

LOOP FACILITATES MOVEMENT OF TRAINS

The loop track in the yard has the minimum radius that the Cambridge subway type of cars can safely negotiate. The establishment of a loop track required a very large area, so that there is a large space within the loop for storage tracks. Only sufficient tracks have been installed to take care of about 60 cars, which storage space, in the opinion of the transportation department, is sufficient at the present time. These tracks occupy only a small portion of the total available space, so that there is ample room for expansion. The accompanying diagram shows the general plan of the yard and the track layout.

It will be noted on the diagram that one track is equipped with a sunken pit where inspection can be made readily of the trucks and other apparatus under the cars. Emergency repairs can be made here also, if necessary. These tracks are numbered, as shown, and the track numbers are referred to and are in constant use by the yardmen, trainmen and the operator at tower Q.

At the entrance to the yard, on the right side as the trains enter it, is a one-story brick and concrete building, 65 ft. 8 in. long and 26 ft. 2 in. wide. It is divided into three parts. The part at the east end is used by the yardmen of the transportation department; the middle section is used by the department of rolling stock and shops, which will keep here certain material and tools for inspecting and making repairs to cars; and the west portion has been turned over to the maintenance department for the use of trackwalkers, signal men and others. The maintenance section will be used in winter for the use of additional men sent to the yard to remove snow and keep the switches open during snowstorms. The building is equipped with ample toilets and washing facilities. It is heated by steam, the heating plant being located in the basement at the west end.

From Dorchester Avenue to the Codman Street yard, a track has been installed in the center of the Southern Artery, leading into the yard, parallel to track No. 1, and terminating near the yardmen's building. Alongside this track is a driveway which is used for hauling material to, or taking it away from, the yard or the yardmen's building.

There is a system of inter-communication connecting tower Q, the yardmen's building and a small switchman's booth located near the Southern Artery Bridge. This is complete in every detail, the three locations being connected with both main line and inter-communicating telephones, call bells and a special annunciator system. The bell signals are used by the towerman in calling upon the yard force to put a relay train into road service, in notifying them when a road train is to be removed from service, etc. The annunciator is used by the yardmen to notify the towerman of required routes to be set up for train movements through the interlocking. Telephones are, of course, for securing and transmitting a variety of information, where greater detail is necessary than can be given by bell code or annunciators.

The annunciator in use was especially designed. It consists of push-button controls and miniature lights at both the yard building and switchman's booth, and with miniature indicating lights, cancelling buttons and buzzer at tower Q. In calling for a route to be set up, the yardman pushes the button at either the yardmen's building or the switchman's booth. This call is indicated at tower Q by both the light and audible signal. The corresponding light is also displayed at the originating point and continues to show until the route has been set and train movement made, after which it is cancelled by the towerman. By this method, accuracy on the part of both men is required. As both men have the indication of what was called for, disputes are avoided.

Aerial view of the terminus of the Dorchester Rapid Transit Extension, showing the Codman Street yard in the foreground and the Ashmont Street station beyond the yard.

The yardmen's building, at the entrance to the yard, is used by the yardmen of the transportation department, the department of rolling stock and shops, and the trackwalkers, signal men and others of the maintenance department.

General plan of the Codman Street Yard and the tracks leading to the Ashmont Station.


The interlocking tower of the complete yard signal system installed is shown at the right of this view.	Looking north from the yard. The track at the extreme left is the relay track, used for trains which are to go back into service immediately. Note the wooden platforms for the trainmen and trackwalkers.

Sources: Electric Railway Journal, McGraw Hill Company, Digitized by Microsoft, Americana Collection, archive.org.

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