Common
Boston Common
A short trip outside once you reach the street. There are paved paths, but slopes and events can change which route works.
Accessibility page for Boston Common
Best for Boston Common · time outside in the park
Park Street
Planned for wheelchair riders
Red and Green Line trains stop here, under the edge of Boston Common. You need elevators to get through the underground transfer. Then a short trip outside takes you onto Boston Common and the Public Garden.
Written for riders who need working elevators to reach the park.
- Red
- Green B
- Green C
- Green D
- Green E
Station place-pktrm
- Elevators
- 3 · Street ↔ platform
- Escalators
- 1 · Not a substitute for elevators
- After the elevator
- Boston Common / Tremont Street sidewalk
Why this stop exists
Park Street · Boston Common and Public Garden entrances
The Red and Green Line platforms meet underground. You need the elevator until you reach the street on Tremont Street.
Disability & mobility
Elevators first. Park second.
Park Street is a deep transfer station between the Red and Green Lines, with elevators to the street. If they are out, the only other way up is stairs. Downtown Crossing is not an easy substitute for reaching Boston Common.
Garden
Public Garden
The same edge of the park, west across Charles Street. Outside only; bridges and paths vary.
City of Boston park access list for Public Garden
Best for the Public Garden
At this stop, “accessible” only holds when the elevators are working. Not every path on Boston Common is flat.
If the Park Street elevators are out, check our live map before you plan to use this station for Boston Common. Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) elevator status: mbta.com/elevators.
On the ground
What the trip actually feels like
Three steps: the elevator, Tremont Street, the park path.
01
Check the elevators before you transfer
This is a deep, complex transfer between the Red and Green Lines. The elevators decide whether you can make the trip.
02
Come up at the edge of Boston Common
At street level you are at Tremont Street and Park Street.
03
Boston Common or the Public Garden
Pick where you’re going before you leave the platform.
Why this stop feels like this
The transfer station people use to reach the park
- 1897Tremont Street subway
- CommonBoston Common above the station
- TransferRed Line meets Green Line
- TodayNo elevator, no trip
Park Street exists for park trips. Whether you can make one depends on the elevators.
The stop sits under the edge of Boston Common so riders can reach the park paths without a long route through downtown. You still need the elevators to get between the platform and the street.
Before you board, decide where you’re heading (Boston Common or the Public Garden). If an elevator is out, change plans; don’t treat it as a small delay.
On the street
Where you'll come out
Park Street station
Park Street · Tremont Street
Boston, Massachusetts
Park Street elevators · outside to Boston Common / Public Garden
Red Line · Green Line
Nearby when the elevators work: Boston Common, Public Garden. When they don’t: don’t assume Downtown Crossing is a substitute way into the park.
Open Park Street on the live mapLive elevator status at Park StreetAfter the elevator
Travel time from this station
Sorted shortest first. Times are hand-set for a chair or stroller pace after you clear the elevators — not live routing.
At the venue
What each place offers
We copied these by hand from each venue’s own pages. They may be out of date or wrong, so confirm on the venue’s page before you go.
Boston Common
- Some paths have stairs. At the Visitor Information Center, staff can show you step-free paths on a map.
- Public restrooms at the Visitor Information Center, open all year.
- The city also lists an accessible portable toilet and water fountains with wheelchair access.
Public Garden
- The city lists a loop path, benches with wheelchair spaces, and shaded seating. The Garden has no restroom.
- Nearest restroom: a seasonal trailer with an accessible restroom on the Common’s MacArthur Mall, near Charles Street.
Last look
Before you go
Four things to check before you go.
Check the map
Make sure the Park Street elevators are working before you ride in.
Pick where you’re going
Boston Common or the Public Garden. Same station, different time outside.
Plan around events
Festivals can narrow the paths you can use.
Verify park surfaces
Park paths are all outside. Our map covers the station elevators.
About this guide. We put these guides together by hand. Travel times are our own estimates, and venue details are copied from their websites, so either can be wrong or out of date. Check the venue’s page before you go. For elevators, trust the live map and the transit agency.