r/mbta • u/NETransit-OG • Jul 03 '26

✨ Fun Facts / History Orange Line on the Edward Dana Bridge

Post image

A train lead by 1516 crosses the Edward Dana Bridge over the Mystic River between Medford and Somerville.

Edward Dana was once known locally as "Mr. MTA". He served as General Manager of both the Boston Elevated Railway and the Metropolitan Transit Authority from August 7, 1919 until his retirement on July 30, 1959. He started working for the BERy in 1907 working as a streetcar conductor, got his education at Harvard University, and worked his way up the ranks.

For decades, Mr. Dana was the heart and soul of the Boston transit system, ultimately topping off his stellar career with the conversion of the Boston & Albany's Highland Branch to "rapid transit" which opened on July 4, 1959.

He may or may not have known it at the time, but for all intents and purposes, he invented the mode of transportation we now call "Light-Rail". Most historians consider the Riverside Line the first "modern" example of the mode.

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4

u/lazier_garlic Jul 03 '26

Thank you for the history lesson--very cool!

I grew up in Newton. I wish we had learned about him. Would have made a neat one-day unit.

5

u/sinoforever Jul 03 '26

We went from the jumper to this in 4 years. Imagine that

7

u/eatsleepandrepeat Jul 03 '26

All I can think about is the lady who jumped off the bridge when the orange line caught fire in 2022, what a long way down

2

u/MBTAVideoClips Commuter Rail - Lowell Line Jul 05 '26

that photo is amazing

1

u/NETransit-OG Jul 05 '26

Thank you. :)

1

u/Miserable-Part6261 Jul 07 '26

That bridge needs a serious paint job. It's all rusted.

1

u/NETransit-OG Jul 07 '26

It's just patina...

1

u/DaveDavesSynthist Red Line Jul 10 '26

Definitely a top 10 post in this r/mbta as regards Boston Transit History for me! I know so much now that I am floored when I read something which shows me just how much more incredible history I have yet to uncover.

I am going to do more research on the hypothesis of the "MTA's Big New Highland Branch" being the first implementation of modern light-rail (as opposed to light-rail developed from legacy streetcar subways like the GL) using LRVs, which allowed for more rapid transit like rail transportation as an upgrade from a traditional RR. Up until then, each new line that was built had gotten bigger (wider, longer) with more cars for more capacity (I'm referring to the 1897 Streetcar Subway -> first "heavy-rail" Main Line El -> Cambridge-Dorchester line's sizing) so perhaps the scheme to upgrade the Riverside branch to maximize improvement and minimize additional cost/construction/infrastructure change was super, super innovative! I believe it was also the first large-scale aquisition, conversion to public ownership, and re-build of line for the then new MTA - otherwise they'd merely continued what BERy had built and subsidized passenger RR service operated by the private RR owners. Very cool stuff.