Tameka+Hatcher

= = =__The Ashmont Train Station: Right On Track__=

== People living in the inner cities today are always on the go. Whether we are going to work, school, or any place of recreation people want to be on time. Every morning on my way to school, or maybe to go downtown to shop I always ride the Ashmont train to take me where I need to go at a low price and in a short period of time. The ashmont T station is located on 1900 Dorchester Ave. which is located on the main road in Dorchester. Ashmont Station is accessible and safe so I said to myself “What better place is there to go and be part of and observe the history and the surroundings of the Ashmont Train Station. With a new and improved look, Ashmont station will be the ultimate train station for people of all ages.

The Ashmont Train Station: Right on Track In American, people living in large cities are always on the go and whether they are going to work, school or any place of recreation, people want to be on time. For the people of drives from place to place, it can be extremely difficult to get somewhere while your in traffic for hours. But there is a solution to getting from place to place without having to wait impatiently for the cars in front of you to start moving. For the others travelers like myself that prefers to take transportation that’s fast, and right on track we go to the Ashmont Train Station, and ride on the redline train to anywhere in the city. Every morning from Monday to Friday to take the Ashmont train to school. While on weekends, I may take the train to Downtown Crossing; which is a place to go for recreation, or business and shop for seasonal apparel. I always ride The Ashmont train, because it is cheaper than driving and it is time efficient. The Ashmont Train Station is located on 1900 Dorchester Avenue and its on the main road in Dorchester Massachusetts. Ashmont Station is accessible and safe so I said to myself “What better place is there to go and be part of, and observe the architecture and the surroundings of the Ashmont Train Station. With a new and improved look (in process), The Ashmont Train Station will be the ultimate train station for all people of all ages. The First Ashmont Station was opened in 1872. At that time it was just a small and simple building along The Shawmut Train Station Branch which is also located in Dorchester Massachusetts. Now over a hundred years later as the city itself and population grew, The Ashmont Train Station’s architecture grew as well into large convenient location for transportation. The Ashmont Train Station is now a combination of a subway, bus stop, and a trolley stop that travels from Dorchester to Mattapan. It can also be a place where you can hang out with friends, have dinner at the Ashmont Grill, and other restaurants near by, or even live in the beautiful Carruth Apartments exactly next to the Ashmont Station, now how convenient is that? The Ashmont Station is a spacious and diverse outdoor setting that draws attention to diverse local Bostonians, and maybe even tourist. Its comfortable and people can have easy access to get to wherever they decide to go, and that’s what makes Ashmont station such a great place. A person’s first impression of The Ashmont Station would probably be chaotic, loud, and a lot of traffic. Dorchester Avenue (where Ashmont Station is located) is an extremely busy road, because it is one of the main roads in Dorchester. And with hundreds or maybe thousands of people living in the community it adds to the liveliness of the city’s atmosphere. Being in the Ashmont Train Station gives me a source of energy sometimes, especially in the morning on my way to school as I am walking towards to platform. I even find myself having to run sometimes as I hear bells ringing and I see my train slowly arriving at the platform. There is often other people men, women, sometimes teenagers running as well to catch the same train heading to work or school. But on several easy mornings, I walk with a slow pace and observe my surroundings on my way to The Ashmont Station. Usually when I am walking to the station in the morning I see a lot of people. Young, old, men, women, teenagers, even young kids walking with theirs backpacks, or suitcases waiting for their school bus to come or heading over to the Ashmont Station. I also see several police officers around, and a few of them are controlling the traffic. For example the side walk myself and others usually walk on to get to the station was closed, because of construction at a certain time, so the police officer would stop the traffic in order for us to walk safely across the street to the open sidewalk. I also would see bulldozers, and large trucks at Ashmont Station, as the construction workers builds the new model of the Station. I was able to research The Ashmont Station to find out what the new model of the train station will look like. Since it is already an outdoor station, there will also be an area along side of the road where people can go to sit down relax, and communicate with others. And small plants and trees as decoration. There are also new parking spaces at the station for people living in the Carruth Apartments, along with new bus stops. The new model of Ashmont Station is almost complete, and I know myself along with other city locals will be very pleased with the finished product. Some mornings as I walk to the station I can smell the potent scent of tar, and cement when the construction workers were building the new side walk. As I would get closer to the station I could smell the Dunkin Donuts coffee from across the street, and cigarette smoke coming from a few people who are standing and waiting at the bus stop. As soon as I get closer to the platform, I see a lot more people. I see construction workers working on the elevators and escaladers for the new station. During late October and early November, experienced the rally of the mayor campaign. I saw several people holding up signs and chanting and cheering out slogans to the people walking and driving by. They were the representation and support group the a particular candidate for the mayor election. Sometimes there will be people handing out objects with their candidate’s name on it as well as shaking locals’ hands as they ,made their way to the platform to help gain the community’s vote. The mornings when the rallies would take place is the mornings where the atmosphere of the neighborhood would be the loudest. I see I sometimes see people of a different race, genders, and ages in the community talking to one another and waiting for the train or bus. On a typical morning I would see a few people standing on the same platform as I reading a newspaper. I can even feel the rumbling of the Mattapan Trolley above making its way to the next stop. If you travel back and forth to The Ashmont Train Station every day like I do, you will notice that the type of vibe you experience in the morning is completely different to the vibe in the evening and night. In the morning the atmosphere is very quiet, yet alive. No person is hardly making a sound but I can always hear the trains screeching up to the platform, and cars going by and often beeping at others cars in the traffic. And the cigarette smoke I usually smell more of in the morning than evening/night. At night when I am coming home from work I see a lot more people I saw earlier that day. Sometimes I would even see a few police officers patrolling the areas in front of the Ashmont station and across the street near the Dunkin Donuts, because at this time of there is often mischief taken place. And every now and then I would hear a police car, fire truck, or ambulance siren go off as they race to the emergency. A lot of people mainly teenage boys and grown men are out hanging out with other teenage boys and grown men at night. As I walk up the stairs of the platform that leads to the side walk, I hear music blasting in cars going by, and I could hear other young teens swearing, laughing, and talking about events that happened earlier that day. I also see more teenagers hanging out at the bus stop at Ashmont Station, and across the street in the Dunkin Donuts parking lot talking to others and just walking around. I am very happy to be part of the Dorchester community, because it is very diverse, the city itself is always energetic day and night. The Ashmont Station is easy to locate, safe, and has great service.