Today’s Headlines

• TIV Greenfield Event | Thur. Feb 1st

• 2018 State Rail Plan Draft Released

• New Hartford Line Website Launched

• Vermonter Extended to Montreal by 2020?

• CSX Considers Sale of Lines in Massachusetts (UPDATED)

• Transitdocs.com Train Status Data

• FRCOG | 20 Years of Working for Franklin County and You

 

Calendar

State Rail Plan Information Meeting
– Meeting organized by MassDOT –
Mo. January 29, 2018 | 6 pm – 7:30 pm

Worcester Regional Transit Authority
60 Forster St
Worcester, MA 01608

Further details
Massachusetts State Rail Plan (Mass.gov)

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Lessons from the VERMONTER for
Northern New England Rail Passenger Service
– Event organized by Trains in the Valley –
Thurs. February 1, 2018 | 6 pm – 7:30 pm
(Snow Date Wed. February 7th)

Olver Transit Center
12 Olive Street
Greenfield, MA 01301

Registration link
https://trainsinthevalley.eventbrite.com

 

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Trains In The Valley Event | Thur. Feb 1st

Please join us in Greenfield this Thursday, February 1st at 6 pm to hear about the past, present, and future of passenger rail service in our region.

 

Further details and registration information can be found on this link:
https://trainsinthevalley.eventbrite.com

Note that registration is requested but not required. Walk-ins are more than welcome.

— As of 6 pm on Friday, January 26th we have 29 people registered for this event.

UPDATE | We now have 38 people registered as of 9 pm on Wed. Jan. 31st. The room holds 60+ so we’ve got lots of space if anyone wants to just walk in at the last minute.

 

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2018 State Rail Plan Draft Released

The Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) today released the 2018 State Rail Plan Draft for Public Comment.

2018 State Rail Plan Draft for Public Comment (PDF)
MassDOT | January 26, 2018 | 129-pages

 

Of particular note —

• The draft plan says that MassDOT is working with Amtrak and Connecticut to assess the feasibility of a pilot service that would extend New Haven – Springfield passenger rail service to Holyoke, Northampton and Greenfield.
• The draft proposes a “Western Massachusetts to Boston Passenger Rail Service Study.”

 

We encourage interested parties and stakeholders to attend the Information Meeting on the State Rail Plan Update to be held at 6 pm on Monday, January 29th.

The meeting will be held at Worcester Regional Transit Authority, 60 Foster Street, in Worcester.

The State Rail Plan is a federally required document that must be updated at least every five years. Future rail activities in each state are generally guided by this document, so if a desired initiative or program is not in a state’s rail plan, it makes it more difficult for the state to undertake it in the coming years.

Note that the 2018 State Rail Plan is an update to the 2010 State Rail Plan. The plan documents the state rail system and planned improvements, and outlines the Commonwealth’s 20-year vision and four-year plan for the statewide rail system.

We also encourage interested parties and stakeholders to submit written comments on the State Rail Plan during the three-week public comment period which we understand will open on or about January 29th.

We will have more to report on this once we’ve had a chance to review the draft document in detail.

Further details
Massachusetts State Rail Plan (Mass.gov)

 

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New Hartford Line Website Launched

Over the next several months, the Hartford Line website will be enhanced with additional information and features, including detailed information on connections to other local transit options; interactive, 360-degree views of the train stations that will serve the line; and milestone events as the service approaches its launch date in May 2018.

 

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Vermonter Extended to Montreal by 2020?

“Restored train service to Montreal chugs closer to reality”
By Kyle Midura | Gray Washington News Bureau | January 15, 2018

“It took acts of Congress and Canadian parliament, but an effort to reconnect DC to Montreal — with stops in Vermont — is back on-track. ‘I would think no later than 2020,’ said Sen. Patrick Leahy (D-Vermont) when he expects the service to return.”

The Canadian Parliament passes new customs preclearance language into law [in December 2017] that will make possible improved rail travel between the U.S. and Canada.

The passage of the bill in Canada removes all legislative hurdles to the creation of a preclearance facility at Montreal’s Central Station, for reestablishing passenger train service between Vermont and Montreal.