Lines that never should have been abandoned?

Noel Weaver wrote:At issue here and maybe this should be re-titled to lines that should never have been built in the first place. Both the New Haven and the Boston and Maine and their predecessors over-built in both Southern New England and in Northern New England. If you have public timetables from the New Haven or the Boston and Maine from lets say the 1920's or so, take a look at the maps in them. Back in those days many places that had not much more than an outhouse were connected by a rail line that went from nowhere to nowhere via nowhere. Other lines were started but never finished or were built and nearly finished but never moved a car of revenue freight. Many of these lines were gone before WW-II. At one time the Boston and Maine had 5 different lines that connected Boston to the Conn. River, only one remains (via East Deerfield). Much of the old Central New England should never have been built, it carried little freight even in the 1920's. I suspect that other parts of the country had the same situation as New England once had but I know more about New England than about the great beyond.
I think today we need to be grateful for what we still have.
Noel Weaver

Noel- Actually I think New England was hands-down the most overbuilt part of the country in terms of rail mileage. I recall reading somewhere that by 1915 or so no place in Connecticut was more than 6 miles from a railroad. Just looking at this map, for example, I count 6 or 7 plausible routes from Beacon Falls to Middletown! http://www.vizettes.com/kt/ct-rr-maps/ct-1893.htm

Back on the subject of the original post- I've always thought that if the original Housatonic main from Bridgeport to Botsford had survived into the post-WW2 years it would have made a handy feeder branch for commuters from Trumbull and Monroe.