Railroad Forums 

Discussion relating to the operations of MTA MetroNorth Railroad including west of Hudson operations and discussion of CtDOT sponsored rail operations such as Shore Line East and the Springfield to New Haven Hartford Line

Moderators: GirlOnTheTrain, nomis, FL9AC, Jeff Smith

 #1511889  by nomis
 
Track 4 has been OOS for the duration of the platform rebuilding project. Once the platform is complete, you will get the track back.
 #1512301  by lordsigma12345
 
Well unless you are talking about the Springfield specific ridership number reported in a recent, very badly written, MassLive article. That number (around 11,000) referred only to the CTrail operated trains. The number being reported by CDOT for the Hartford Line as a whole includes everything.
 #1513023  by JcPinCT
 
"The DOT is using its available funding for upgrades to current stations in Windsor and Windsor Locks, while also planning to double track the entire route before building the four new stations. DOT public transportation bureau chief Rich Andreski said construction on the Windsor Locks station will begin next year."

https://www.courant.com/news/connecticu ... story.html
 #1513062  by troffey
 
Jeff Smith wrote: Fri Jun 21, 2019 10:42 am I had the same doubts about double-tracking beyond Windsor Locks as well. And that's something that can actually proceed. The bridge rehab/double would be fairly expensive. As for Enfield, They should do the southern infill stations first; they already have the frequency to support them.

Regarding Springfield, wasn't or isn't there an issue with storage? Not sure how the additional platform will improve that.
MassDOT was(is?) supposed to build a layover in Springfield, off the former Armory Branch/Armory Street. It's supposed to provide space for the MassDOT Knowledge Corridor service (pilot starting in 2019, but using existing Shuttle equipment) as well as a northern base for CTrail. With no layover space currently allocated to CTrail, the schedule out of Springfield is all based around when sets arrive as opposed to the best available time slots. So far, nothing has been done on the MA end to advance this aspect of the project.
 #1513757  by daybeers
 
troffey wrote: Fri Jul 05, 2019 7:12 pm
Jeff Smith wrote: Fri Jun 21, 2019 10:42 am I had the same doubts about double-tracking beyond Windsor Locks as well. And that's something that can actually proceed. The bridge rehab/double would be fairly expensive. As for Enfield, They should do the southern infill stations first; they already have the frequency to support them.

Regarding Springfield, wasn't or isn't there an issue with storage? Not sure how the additional platform will improve that.
MassDOT was(is?) supposed to build a layover in Springfield, off the former Armory Branch/Armory Street. It's supposed to provide space for the MassDOT Knowledge Corridor service (pilot starting in 2019, but using existing Shuttle equipment) as well as a northern base for CTrail. With no layover space currently allocated to CTrail, the schedule out of Springfield is all based around when sets arrive as opposed to the best available time slots. So far, nothing has been done on the MA end to advance this aspect of the project.
I think MA is shooting itself in the foot with this. They're neglecting western Mass like they always do when increased Hartford Line service (especially with the possibility of CTrail trains laying over in the yard) will have a strong positive effect on Greater Springfield's community and economy.

Does anyone know the status of the new high-level platform at Springfield?
 #1513783  by gregorygrice
 
Almost done. Plates have been removed off of Track 4 and the Track department & B&B is working on redoing the crossing and tamping the track to platform standards. Once 4 opens, they will do the same with Track 6.

Roof is about 90% complete which leaves the elevator, finishing touches on stairs and platform fixtures.
 #1514379  by Kilo Echo
 
The Connecticut Airport Authority broke ground this morning on a new $210 million Ground Transportation Center at Bradley International Airport.

Fair use:
The transportation center is designed to accommodate a growing number of passengers arriving and departing at the airport by bus, including a route between the Windsor Locks station on the Hartford Line and the airport. In the future, a hoped for rail line would connect the Hartford Line directly to the airport.
Full story: https://www.courant.com/business/hc-biz ... story.html
 #1514563  by Jeff Smith
 
Late Night Schedule Experiment: Courant.com
Hartford Line again offers late-night service Saturday as capital city prepares for 50,000 visitors

Trains and buses will provide late-night service from Hartford’s Union Station to stops along the Hartford Line Saturday for the second weekend in a row as officials look to build on the limited use of last week’s extra service.

Last Saturday, eight passengers rode a 12:20 a.m. southbound train and two people rode late-night northbound buses that left at 11:15 p.m. and midnight, said Judd Everhart, director of communications for the state Department of Transportation.

Public Transportation Bureau Chief Rich Andreski said the extended hours are an experiment to gauge demand for late-night trains. The last train typically departs Union Station around 10:30 p.m.

Andreski said even if the late-night options don’t carry many passengers, they can still boost ridership into the city earlier that day because people have an assurance that they can get home on a train or bus later that night if needed. If the late-night trains demonstrate a need, Andreski said the DOT would “love to offer something” around 11 p.m. regularly.
...
 #1514617  by GirlOnTheTrain
 
The problem with the late-night southbound service is that if one is connecting to MNRR, you're SOL. For people along the line though, it's great.

Was debating going to a Yard Goats game, but I really have no desire to wait around on Amtrak 66 once I get to NHV. If I do end up going, I'll drive and park at an intermediate station.
 #1515090  by JcPinCT
 
JcPinCT wrote: Fri Jul 19, 2019 7:30 pm "Come check out the proposed design for the Windsor Rail Station upgrades! Join CT Dept. of Transportation on Thursday, July 25, 5:30- 7:30PM in the Ludlow Room at Windsor Town Hall for a public information meeting. There will be time for Q&A with the project team."
Interesting meeting tonight. Here's a link to the Windsor existing station upgrades that CTDOT is proposing to make in 2020.
https://onedrive.live.com/?cid=A7B7CC4A ... 38&o=OneUp

Project will go out to bid late 2019 for a Spring 2020 start date and late 2020 completion date. The cost is $5 million which includes some track work (not the Windsor/Windsor Locks/Enfield double tracking) necessary for a new Windsor station to be built at a later date.

The project to add back the second track in Windsor, Windsor Locks and Enfield will follow the Windsor station upgrades project but NOT include the CT River bridge. The CT River bridge will be addressed in a separate future project (date TBD) as the existing bridge's historical design does not allow it to accept a second track with enough clearance for two trains.
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