Red Line Information and Photo Tour
			ABOUT THE LINE - The Red Line is the longest of the MBTA Rapid Transit routes, operating from two branches at 23.1 miles including the Mattapan line. The oldest and original route is the Ashmont Line. This route serves Dorchester and curves it's way north and east to the junction with the South Shore route in South Bay. The route is in a subway from Asmont to about Fields Corner. From there it is elevated embankment right of way and surface to the junction with the South Shore Line. The Braintree Branch runs along former New Haven right of way from Braintree, through Quincy to the junction with the Ashmont line. The route features a trip through cuts, elevated embankments, a large bridge over the Neponset River, and another flyover in Dorechester before meeting up with the Ashmont Line. There the lines merge and dive into a tunnel dated 1925. The merger of the two lines is also unique as it is set up with a series of tunnels and flyovers that allow trains to merge from the two branches without blocking each others path. The line is in the subway through downtown except for a short senic run over the Longfellow Bridge then back in the subway all the way to Alewife. Another very unique and special branch of the Red Line also exists. The High Speed Trolley Line runs from Ashmont to Mattapan using PCC cars. This route operates on an exclusive right of way and had two crossings at grade. About a dozen or so PCC cars opreate here making a number of stops along the way. The High Speed Line goes right through a Cemetary at Cedar Grove, the only rail right of way to do so. The Red Line operates with a variety of equipment including the rebuilt 01500 and 01600 cars, plus the newer 01700's and the newest 01800 series. PCC cars rule the High Speed Trolley Line. The Red Line is so named due to the the old terminal ending at Harvard. Crimsom (Red) is Harvard's color. HISTORY - The Red Line began as the Dorchester - Cambridge subway, completed near 1925, from Ashmont in Dorchester via dowtown Boston  to Harvard Square in Cambridge . At Ashmont, connections were made with the High Speed Trolley Line, to Mattapan Square. At Mattapan the trolleys once fanned out on a number of routes from that location. The south shore route was opened in 1971 to Quincy along an old New Haven Right of Way. Careful planning preserved a corridor for possible rail reactivation in the future, planning that did pay off. In 1980 the South Shore line was extended to Braintree the current terminus. The Cambridge route ended at Harvard until extended to a temporary outdoor station at Harvard Brattel  right next door to Harvard. The line was eventually extended to Alewife in 1984.
					A Red Line train consiting of the 01800 series arrives at Braintree on a mild rainy and windy day in February of 2000.
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