Courthouse Station is an underground bus rapid transit station on the MBTA's Silver Line, located under Seaport Boulevard at Thomson Street on the South Boston Waterfront. It is named for the John Joseph Moakley United States Courthouse which is one block to the north on Fan Pier. Courthouse is also the closest rapid transit station to the Institute of Contemporary Art, Boston.Courthouse station is fully handicapped accessible.History and designCourthouse station opened along with the rest of the Waterfront Tunnel from South Station Under to Silver Line Way on December 17, 2004. Construction of the $110 million station was technically demanding, as the Waterfront district is built on fill rather than solid ground or rock. Slurry walls and large braces were built, allowing 210,000 cubic yards of soil to be excavated for the platform area.The station was intended as the centerpiece of the Silver Line and a key feature of Boston's Innovation District, with a visual impact significantly different fromn other stations in the MBTA system. It includes "some of the most complex and ornate station finishes installed in any MBTA transportation facility to date" which cost $30 million to complete. The lobby includes a polished stone floor and distinctive purple overhead lighting fixtures, while both the platforms have brushed steel finishes on support columns and walls. The station was turned into an "idea lab" nightclub and conference center in June 2014 for Boston Idea Week, which included several other MBTA-centered events.
