WALTHAM

Narrative

Waltham is a metropolitan city of 57,878, situated nine miles from Boston,

encompassing a total area of 13.6 square miles. The Charles River cuts a

path through the southern section of Waltham used throughout history for

transport, water, and industry. Today, the Charles River has given way to

Route 128 as the main economic center in the City. In the Greater Boston

area, Waltham has the second largest office market behind Boston. Waltham

has a diverse housing stock, with dense multi-family housing in the

southern section of the City and larger lot single-family housing in the

northern section. The City also boasts large park and open space

facilities such as Prospect Hill Park an the Robert Treat Paine Estate.

With an aggressive revitalization program, Waltham is witnessing the

rebirth of its historic downtown and is providing better public access to

its greatest natural resource, the Charles River.


TRANSPORTATION AND ACCESS

Waltham is situated in the Greater Boston Area, which has excellent rail,

air, and highway facilities. State Route 128 and Interstate Route 495

divide the region into inner and outer zones, which are connected by

numerous "spokes" providing direct access to the airport, port, and

intermodal facilities of Boston.

Principal highways are State Route 128, the inner loop around Boston, and

cross-state highway U.S. Route 20, which intersect in Waltham.

Commuter rail service to North Station, Boston is available from Brandeis

(travel time: 25 min; 70 MBTA parking spaces) and Waltham (travel time:

19-22 min.; City Parking Lot). Freight rail service is available from the

Springfield Terminal Railway, contact number: (508) 663-1073

Waltham is a member of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority

(MBTA). The MBTA provides fixed route service to neighboring communities.

The MBTA also provides THE RIDE, a paratransit service for the elderly and

disabled.

L.G. Hanscom Field, a joint civil-military airport, is located in Bedford.

A Reliever Airport with Commercial Service (CR), it has a 5,106' asphalt

runway and a 7,001' concrete and asphalt runway. Instrument approaches

available: Precision and non-precision. Logan International Airport is

also easily accessible from Waltham.