A member of Newton's Transportation Advisory Group wants the city to push for a feasibility study on extending the Green Line two miles to Needham.
Dr. Srdjan S. Nedeljkovic, a Newton Highlands resident, made the case in a column published Sunday, Aug. 30, in the Newton Beacon. He argues the MBTA's D branch could run along the unused Charles River Railroad corridor from Newton Highlands through Newton Upper Falls to Needham Center. The route would give riders direct access to the Longwood Medical Area and downtown Boston.
The rails are gone.
But the 80-foot-wide right-of-way remains intact. Passenger trains last ran on the corridor in the 1930s, and freight service ended around 2002 to 2005. A portion now serves as the Upper Falls Greenway, a pedestrian and bicycle path.
Ridership and the Northland gap
Nedeljkovic pointed to the MBTA's 2010 Program for Mass Transportation (PMT), which projected more than 8,000 daily trips on a restored line. The existing D branch west of Newton Highlands carries about 3,000 trips per day. He noted those projections predate the Northland development, which will add more than 800 housing units and close to 100,000 square feet of commercial space along the Needham Street corridor.
"It is a great example of transit-oriented development, except for one thing: It lacks an efficient, high-capacity transit line that can bring people to and from the entire Boston region," Nedeljkovic wrote.
He proposed funding the extension partly through tax-increment and district improvement financing, using new tax revenue from economic growth along the corridor. With the right planning, Nedeljkovic wrote, the extension could potentially run fare-free. The project would require new bridges across the Charles River and Route 95.
Existing studies point in a similar direction
Newton and Needham already completed a Community Way Feasibility Study in September 2023, examining the same former railroad corridor. That study, according to the city's project page, considered a shared-use path or public transportation with electric shuttle buses. It did not evaluate Green Line light rail. The city describes the project as "still in the preliminary stages and has not yet been planned, designed, or funded."
A June 2026 MassINC Policy Center and TransitMatters report on regional rail lends broader context. It excluded the MBTA's Needham commuter rail line from its analysis because TransitMatters considers converting it to Orange and Green Line extensions "the optimal long-term strategy for this asset." That report addresses the commuter rail line, not the Charles River Railroad corridor specifically, but both concepts envision Green Line service reaching Needham.
Meanwhile, the MBTA is separately upgrading the existing Newton Highlands D branch station with ADA-compliant ramps, level boarding platforms and heated shelters, according to the city's station project page.
Nedeljkovic also served on the Newton Highlands Village Enhancement Project Working Group, which submitted recommendations to the City Council's Public Facilities Committee on March 31. No city officials have publicly responded to the extension proposal, and no meeting or vote on the idea has been scheduled.
