Map of Back Bay at the Back Bay MBTA Station
While waiting for the commuter rail at any of the seven tracks you will see a map of Boston's Back bay. While some of the maps are showing 'Old Boston Town," there are a few modern maps. I am guessing that the maps are there to help people located various points in the Back Bay.
Maps are Outdated
Commuters waiting for the Framingham/Worcester trains may not pay much attention to the maps in the terminal. They are located in various places along the train tracks. The maps may seem fine, but if you take a close look at the map and you may discover something doesn't look quite right.
Map Oddity
Example of some of the Oddity that you may see on the map: (This is the top left section)
- Red Arrow - Part of the the Prudential Mall is missing? Where is Barnes & Noble?
- Green Arrow - Boylston Street doesn't have a road divider.
- Blue Arrow - What about the pedestrian bridge over Huntington Ave?
Looks like the maps are from the Dukakis Administration.
The outdated maps are somewhat useful to get a rough idea where they are to other points in the Back Bay such as Boston Public Gardens and Newbury Street.
However, the maps are outdated. The MBTA can take three courses of action:
- Update all the maps, which may cost a lot of money but are useful for tourists.
- Add a sign to let people know the maps are outdated. (Historic Back Bay in the 1980s)
- Do nothing as nobody really pays attention to the maps.
Finding the Map
You can see the old Boston map between Track 7 and 5 at the Back Bay Commuter rail station.
When you walk into the station from the Dartmouth Street entrance, enter the doors with "South End" and walk by the Dunkin Donuts stand.
Turn left after Dunkin Donuts and go down the stairs where you see "Tracks 5 & 7."
Take a right at the bottom and then another right. Take a short walk along the train tracks.
Walk to the overhead digital clock look to the right and you'll see the classic map.