Parking for train to Boston
 

In May, my husband and I will be traveling from western New York State via Rt.90 to spend four days in Boston and then drive to Newport, RI. Where would be the best place to leave our car for four days and take the train into Boston? I've looked at stations on the Framingham/Worcester Line or the Providence/Stoughton Line. We'll arrive in MA late in the day so will spend a night in a motel and take the train in the morning. Thanks so much.

Your best bet would be the Rt 128 station on the Providence/Stoughton Line. There are about 2600 parking spaces at that station. http://www.mbta.com/schedules_and_ma...ns/?stopId=178

Another option is the Riverside T station on the Green Line of the subway. Riverside is the last station of the Green D Line. And the station is just off the 128/I-90 junction. There are about 900 spots there.

The benefit of Rt 128 station is that there are more spaces. But the downside is that outside of rush hour, the train runs only 1x/hour; and even less frequent on weekends.

The benefit of Riverside is that the T runs every 5-10 minutes. However, depending on what time (and what day) you arrive, you may not be able to find an open space. (But you can try the next stop on the D line, which is Woodland with >500 spots.)

Thank you, yk, for the suggestions. Are the parking areas fairly secure? We'll probably arrive after rush hour in the morning so I'm thinking the Rt. 128 lot might be our best bet for finding available parking. Looks like the trains run approx. every half hour at that time which we wouldn't mind.

Hi Katytod, I've never parked at the Rt 128 station, but it is a garage so I assume it has gated entrance/exit. It's in a fairly safe part of the Boston metrowest area, so I don't think safety will be an issue.

Katy,

I too think the garage is safe (I've parked there but not overnight), but take the usual precautions. Don't leave anything, especially electronics, out in the open--hide the GPS (if you have one), and put anything else in your trunk.

Meant to add that the garage is right next to Rt. 95 (128) and near an area that is mostly corporate offices. It's not in a neighborhood that would have a lot of casual traffic.

There's a Hotel Indigo in Newton within walking distance of the T stop. Perhaps they would allow you to spend one night there and park and take the train into Boston. It's not a long trip.

Since we're leaving the Rochester, NY area late in the day, we may stay somewhere in western or central MA and drive to the Rt. 128 station in the morning. I've just recently found the Fodor community and appreciate all of you being there. Thank for all your responses.

I've left my car at route 128 station for as many as 3 days and never had a problem. You can even pay the parking fee with your fastlane/ezpass transponder.

Just to follow up...We left our car at the Rt. 128 station garage without a hitch, arriving Friday afternoon and leaving on a Monday morning. We encountered just a reasonable amount of traffic and plenty of open parking spaces. Thanks you Fodorites for your advice.

Katytod, thanks for coming back and letting us know it was okay. I've often recommended that lot to people, so I'm glad it worked out for you.

I'm glad it worked out, Katytod. thanks for reporting back!

Yes . . . thanks so much for letting us know it worked out.