Take Back The Poles

When the “E” line branch of Boston’s Green Line trolley was “temporarily suspended” through Jamaica Plain in 1985 (and never to return), the closure left a procession of abandoned overhead wire support poles. These poles still stand today, slowly rusting away and stretching from Forest Hills to the current “E” branch terminus on South Huntington at Heath Street. With the removal of the poles lingering for years on the MBTA capital budget without a source of funding, it might be time to embrace them as a canvas for guerrilla art and DIY neighborhood improvement.

Each pole could be painted a different color like an extended Paul Smith stripe color scheme. Or they could be wrapped in rope or clad in wood a la Aalto. Or how about yarnbombing a few hundred knit cozies? The possibilities are endless…

-Brett