fitchburg

view of fitchburg station from south

thesis, 2020

multi-modal transit and a new civic architecture

Massachusetts is criss-crossed by defunct passenger rail lines that once defined the arrangement of towns and cities in the state. My thesis proposes re-establishing these services as a systematic alternative to car-oriented lifestyles.

This renewal would be defined in the American built environment by an unfamiliar civic typology: the small urban rail station. My work aims to explore how a single modular system could scale, both between towns large and small, and as these places grow and change over time. It also views its programmatic role as broad, playful, indeterminate, and fluid.

I focused my work along the imagined ‘Blackstone Line’, tracing part of the historic path of the Blackstone canal. This line would connect the growing cities of Fitchburg, Worcester, and Providence, while also linking the termini of many of the commuter rail lines going into Boston.

I chose to explore three station sites: Fitchburg, Qunisigamond Village, and Uxbridge. These three communities present diverse scales, surroundings, demographics, and geographies with which to test the flexibility of my modular system.

34 unique CLT panels mounted on a double-tee concrete base make up the structural backbone of the station system. The CLT is insulated with rockwool and clad with cor-ten panels. The double-tees rest on piers, drilled to minimize site disturbance.

Each module contains a centrally- located ‘chimney’ that contains a skylight, vents, and a recess for mechanical equipment. In warmer months, air under the skylight is heated and then vented, which draws cool air in under the shaded canopy of the platform.

environmental cross-section of typ. station



station panelization, doors and windows

A station can be made up of any number of modules, with an infinite diversity of programs. Here are nine examples using the same basic elements of movable bookshelves, and tables and chairs; plus a custom post office module, which uses the empty trains at night to carry packages.