CNZR - Griffin Line

Did anyone see the Railfan & Railroad April 2021 issue? There's an article on the Griffin Branch. I wish CNEZ will get more business...They put new rails in, but why waste it on a dead branch.

I understand there is no more traffic on the line with the advent of the new Home Depot warehouse in South Windsor. Too bad. Recently, they moved an engine that had been at the end of the Griffin Line over to East Windsor to his other RR operation.

BWParker: Thanks....I guess it will become a commuter rail. Home Depot closed the warehouse, then?

Has AJ ever thought of running his own commuter/passenger service? Get a couple RDCs or passenger cars and run it from North Bloomfield or Bloomfield into Hartford. It doesn't have to be fancy... for now, just a parking lot and some wooden platforms (MassDOT has proved wooden high level platforms are indeed possible). Upgrade the track a bit too (you don't need Class 5 on such a short line). An issue would be getting platform space in Hartford... too bad the viaduct can't support more trains. However, AJ's track looks like it ends at the start of the viaduct, where the platform ends.
https://www.google.com/maps/@41.7699414 ... a=!3m1!1e3

You would need to reverse direction with any trains you run, that's why I suggest RDCs.

I don't know... just a thought... probably would wait a year or so before trying anything... let mass transit ridership pick back up first, then do a pilot program. Or am I talking crazy?

I think they could find an RDC or two, and do it, but yes, the issue is platform space in Hartford. They'd need a siding track somewhere. Also, you'd have to reverse there as well. I lived on Ashley St. in one of the historic homes for a year; it was still active then. This is something I wish Housatonic would do with New Milford.

Just to confirm, this is the line that runs up along Asylum Hill, right?

And, two dreaded words: Rail Trail.

CTInsider.com

Plan for 'hARTline' bike trail from Hartford to Bloomfield receives $1.5M in CT funding

HARTFORD — As part of an ever-expanding trail network in the Greater Hartford area, a new path will connect Hartford to Bloomfield along an old rail line.

The "hARTline" received $1.5 million in state bond funding at a Hartford City Council meeting Monday to enter the planning and design phases for the four-mile stretch that will eventually bridge Edwards Street in downtown Hartford to Cottage Grove Road in Bloomfield.

"The hARTline achieves our broader goal of finding ways to reconnect our neighborhoods and knit them back together," said Hartford Mayor Luke Bronin in an interview with CT Insider. "Having a multi-modal corridor that runs all the way from Blue Hills, pass the University of Hartford, through Upper Albany and down the Homestead corridor into downtown would connect those neighborhoods in a really powerful way."
...

Confirmed.

A more detailed writeup that appears to be from the Hartford Courant: https://www.pottershousechurch.ca/luxur ... 1973P0d36/

For its part, the Connecticut Department of Transportation said it remains supportive of a “trails-with-rail” connection.

“While the project is feasible, the safety of the public, with the continued operation of the freight line, must be ensured,” DOT spokesman Josh D. Morgan said, in a statement. “This active freight line moves goods and services to and through Connecticut