A Swellesley reader shared this photo, from Tuesday morning, of the stairs from Cliff Road down to the Wellesley Hills commuter rail station. The question: “Why are the stairs at Wellesley Hills never shoveled?”
We swung by Wednesday AM to see if the situation had improved. Well, a bit, though it’s unclear whether anyone shoveled the stairs or if commuters just stomped or kicked some of the snow away from the stairs, which also lead down to the back of the post office.
We reached out to the MBTA to find out whether help might be on the way from them, but an MBTA says the stairs are owned and supposed to be maintained by the town. The Wellesley DPW, however, says “The sidewalks along Route 9 and the path from Route 9 to Cliff Road are within the Mass DOT right of way and any maintenance and snow removal is their responsibility. The stairs from Cliff Road to the MBTA Station by the Post Office are the responsibility of the MBTA.” These stairs were recently repaired by the MBTA, in fact, according to the DPW.
I’m sorry that it took so long for me to respond to my usual, self-appointed task of clearing the snow off the stairs from Cliff Rd. down to the commuter rail platform, and up to Rt. 9 after the overpass. I was traveling, and my return flight was cancelled due to weather Sunday night. I drove home from Logan on Monday, so it took until Tuesday evening for me to kick the snow off the steps (it’s softer at the end of the day, and I’m not running to make a train). I wear tough boots so scraping snow is slow but effective. The Rt. 9 steps required a shovel, so these didn’t get done until this evening (Wed.), but now I can get to the train, even when I don’t leave myself enough time.
Just doing my part, even if the MBTA/town/state/federal government can’t figure out who “owns” the stairs.