Central Corridor – Trains In The Valley

The latest regional rail news from Trains In The Valley

Today’s Reports

• Hartford Line service to begin in May 2018

• Amtrak Inspection Train Runs North to Montreal

• EVENT | NARP meeting in Springfield | Aug 19th

• EVENT | Knowledge Corridor Transportation Conference | Oct 18th

• Central Corridor Passenger Rail Study Released

• Rebooting New England | UPenn Graduate Planning Studio

• TIV website | Updated station information pages

• TIV website | Northampton Underpass project update

Hartford Line service to begin in May 2018

New Meriden station – under construction | June 29, 2017

Connecticut Governor Dannel Malloy has announced that the “Hartford Line” commuter rail service – between New Haven, Hartford, and Springfield, Ma. – will start in May 2018.

When the Hartford Line service launches, a total of 17 roundtrip trains between New Haven and Hartford will operate each weekday, with 12 of those roundtrip trains continuing to Springfield. On weekends, a total of 13 roundtrip trains will operate between New Haven and Hartford, with 9 of those trains continuing onto Springfield.

A joint venture of TransitAmerica Services and Alternate Concepts was chosen over Amtrak and three other bidders as the service provider for the service.

Further reading
“Gov. Malloy Announces TransitAmerica Services and Alternate Concepts Selected as Service Provider for the Hartford Line”
Press Release | The Office of Gov. Dannel P. Malloy | July 24, 2017

“Connecticut DOT picks transit team to operate Hartford Line”
By Luther Turmelle | New Haven Register | July 24, 2017

“DOT: Amtrak’s history not a factor in selection of joint venture to operate CTtrail Hartford Line” (archived)
By Mike Savino | Meriden Record-Journal | July 25, 2017

Amtrak Inspection Train Runs to Montreal

NECR trestle at East Alburgh, Vt. | looking East | July 18, 2017
Photo Credit: Kevin Burkholder | Steel Wheels Photography
Source: http://www.railpictures.net/photo/623639/ | Image used with permission

Amtrak operated an inspection train from St. Albans, Vt. (SAB) to Montreal (MTR) on Tuesday, July 18, 2017 – another clear signal that plans are progressing to extend the Vermonter north into Canada.

In this image the inspection train is seen crossing the upper part of Lake Champlain on the New England Central railroad (NECR) trestle at East Alburgh, Vt. Various reports suggest that Amtrak President & CEO Wick Moorman was on the train along with other U.S. and Canadian officials.

People who remember taking Amtrak’s former overnight train – the “Montrealer” – north may recall that crossing this trestle was the indication that the train was just moments away from entering Canada.

EVENT | NARP meeting in Springfield | August 19th

‘A Connected New England’

New England Regional Meeting of the National Association of Railroad Passengers (NARP)

Saturday, August 19, 2017
11:00 am – 3:00 pm

Sheraton Monarch Place Hotel – Springfield, Ma.

Keynote Speakers:
Timothy Brennan
Executive Director, Pioneer Valley Planning Commission

Jim Mathews
President/CEO, National Association of Railroad Passengers

Note that this meeting is open to the public.

Further information is available on this link
https://www.narprail.org/events/new-england-2017-regional-meeting

EVENT | Knowledge Corridor Transportation Conference

Mark your calendar for the special half-day conference, “Leveraging the Knowledge Corridor’s Transportation Assets and Investments to Drive Economic Progress.”

Date and time | Wednesday, October 18, 2017 / 8 am – 11.45 am

Venue | Springfield Union Station

The keynote speaker will be Robert Puentes, President/CEO of the Eno Center for Transportation. Panelists will include five members of Congress from the region: Richard Neal and James McGovern from Massachusetts and John Larson, Rosa DeLauro, and Elizabeth Esty from Connecticut.

The meeting agenda also includes plans for talks by Connecticut Commissioner of Transportation James Redeker and his counterpart in the Bay State, Stephanie Pollack, Secretary/CEO of the Massachusetts Department of Transportation.

Further details to follow

Central Corridor Passenger Rail Study Released by MassDOT

The Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) has posted a copy of the recently completed Central Corridor Passenger Rail Feasibility Study on their website. The study, which apparently has been in the works since 2014, examines the implementation and operation of intercity passenger rail service along the Central Corridor.

The Central Corridor is a freight rail line running north-south approximately 100 miles between Brattleboro, Vt. and New London, Ct., including the communities of Amherst and Palmer, MA. MassDOT conducted the feasibility study to examine potential for intercity passenger rail service along the Central Corridor.

It is unclear at this time what if anything MassDOT plans to do now that this study is complete.

The report can be viewed on this link
http://www.massdot.state.ma.us/planning/Main/CompletedStudies.aspx

Rebooting New England | UPenn Graduate Planning Studio

Rebooting New England, a Fall 2016 graduate planning studio convened by the University of Pennsylvania’s School of Design, sets forth a strategy to rebuild the economy of New England’s cities, which have been bypassed economically and physically for decades.

This strategy is underpinned by a modern high-performance rail network between New York and Boston that would link all of New England’s urban centers with these two global cities and with each other.

The 184-page report, which is audacious in its scope, looked closely at the UK initiative known as the “Northern Powerhouse”, an economic revitalization plan for the North of England and its older industrial cities. Underlying this strategy is the $52 billion high-speed rail project, which will link London with Manchester and Leeds. Another planned line will create a network that links all of the major cities in the North of England with each other.

Interesting summer reading.

The report can be viewed this link
https://www.design.upenn.edu/city-regional-planning/graduate/work/rebooting-new-england