This page provides an overview of passenger rail travel options in the Pioneer Valley region of Western Massachusetts.
Photo by Andrew Riedl
Hartford Line
The Hartford Line is a regional passenger rail service between Springfield and New Haven, CT with intermediate stops in Windsor Locks, Windsor, Hartford, Berlin, Meriden, and Wallingford.
The service connects at New Haven Union Station with Amtrak’s Acela Express and Northeast Regional services, Metro-North’s New Haven Line service, and CTDOT’s Shore Line East service.
North-south service
North-south service in the valley is provided by the Valley Flyer and the Vermonter.
The Vermonter operates daily between Washington, D.C., and St. Albans, Vt., with service to Philadelphia, New York City, Hartford, White River Junction and other intermediate stops.
The Valley Flyer service provides service between Greenfield and New Haven, Ct. with scheduled connections to both Amtrak and Metro-North’s New Haven Line.
Both services stop in Greenfield, Northampton, Holyoke and Springfield,
East-west service
East-west service is provided by Amtrak’s Lake Shore Limited service which stops locally — once a day in each direction in the afternoon.
The Lake Shore Limited provides service between Boston South station and Albany-Rensselaer, NY, with intermediate stops in Boston Back Bay, Framingham, Worcester, Springfield, and Pittsfield.
Through service to/from Chicago, and intermediate stations, is also available.
Stations
The regional hub for passenger rail and intercity bus service in the Pioneer Valley is Springfield Union Station.
For local details — including parking — click on one of the pages listed below for the station that you would like to travel to or from.
Windsor Locks, CT (if you live in/near Agawam or Longmeadow)
Other options
Driving to Connecticut to take Metro-North’s New Haven Line to New York City? If you do this we recommend using one of these two stations:
New Haven station at 50 Union Ave, New Haven, CT where parking is $18/day in the garage.
West Haven station | 20 Railroad Ave, West Haven, CT — one station stop to the west of New Haven — where parking is $6/day Mon-Fri and FREE on weekends and holidays.
We are aware of people who travel to Boston by train using the MBTA Framingham/Worcester Commuter Rail Line. If you do this we recommend that you us one of these two stations:
Worcester Union Station | 2 Washington Sq, Worcester, MA — where parking ranges from $4 – $16/day.
Grafton station | 1 Pine St, North Grafton, MA — the next station on this line after Worcester — where parking is $4/day. Using this station, which is only 4 miles further drive, will also save you about 10 minutes in travel time in each direction — since you won’t have to travel into/out of Worcester.
Parking
Here is a comprehensive listing of the parking options at/near the passenger rail stations that are commonly used by residents of the Pioneer Valley.
PDF download | Rail Station Parking – 15 Aug 2018
Notes
The parking rates listed on this chart were last checked in March 2018. If you find a different rates please let us know so we can update the chart.
Amtrak ticket prices
The cost of an Amtrak ticket is generally higher when you purchase your ticket less than about 3 weeks before your travel date — so book early to get the best price. Fares are generally higher during holidays and peak travel periods and can vary based on the day of the week and time of day.
Note that discounted tickets prices are available for Seniors (65+), Military (Active), and members of the Rail Passenger Association.
For additional details check out Amtrak’s [Guide to Fares] web page.
Connecting Services
Peter Pan Bus Lines operates an extensive network of short and long-distance intercity bus routes from its regional hub at Springfield Union Station.
Peter Pan’s station stops in the Pioneer Valley include Amherst, Charlemont, Deerfield, Greenfield, Hampshire College, Holyoke, Northampton, Shelburne Falls, South Hadley, Springfield, and UMass Amherst.
Greyhound Bus Lines provides service in the Pioneer Valley, from Springfield and Greenfield, to/from Albany, White River Junction, Boston, and New York City.
The Pioneer Valley Transit Authority (PVTA) operates local fixed-route bus service in Hampden and Hampshire counties.
The Franklin Regional Transit Authority (FRTA) operates local fixed-route service in Franklin County as well as a service that operates between Greenfield and Northampton.
Using Google Maps for Public Transit Directions
You can get directions for driving, public transit, walking, biking, and flying on Google Maps.
In our region the public transit portion of Google Maps includes the schedule information for Amtrak, Greyhound, and Peter Pan as well as the PVTA and FRTA local bus networks.
Note that schedule information for Hartford Line trains operated by CTrail is not currently available on Google Maps. CTDOT tells us that they are working on this.
For help using Google maps click on this link.
Page last update: January 8, 2024
Page last reviewed: June 28, 2018