Alewife (MBTA Station)

Alewife (MBTA Station)

Alewife, located at the intersection of Alewife Brook Parkway and Cambridgepark West in Cambridge, Massachusetts, is a local intermodal transportation hub. It is the northern terminus of the MBTA's Red Line, and a bus terminal for several local routes and one intercity route. It opened in 1985.

The station is named after Alewife Brook, a nearby tributary of the Mystic River. The alewife is a species of fish which inhabits the Mystic River system.

The station is unusual among MBTA stations for using Eurostile as a typeface for signage instead of Helvetica.

Its facilities include:

• A 2733-space multi-level "park and ride" garage, with a direct connection to Route 2
• Bicycle parking for approximately 500 bicycles. Two gated bike parking cages were added in 2008. Access is controlled by special Bike CharlieCards
• a Zipcar location in the employee parking area
• Connections to the Minuteman Bikeway, the Cambridge Linear Park and the Fitchburg Cutoff Path
• Pedestrian access to East Arlington, via the Minuteman Bikeway and Thorndike Street in Arlington
• A retail area with food and services
• Several works of public art commissioned for the station, including carved benches in the passenger pickup area.