Newburyport Branch

shes all gone, my friend.

Given some of the existing trackage still in place, though in need of serious restoration, in an ideal wish list, it would have been nice to be able to catch a commuter rail or DMU type train in Danvers, Peabody or Lynnfield with connectivity to either Wakefield or Salem. The route could have just run back and forth with transfers at Wakefield or Reading and Salem to go into the city... but it probably will never happen at this point. Sad to see our once vital rail infrastructure continue to significantly decline as it probably will never return.

theman8318 wrote:So there is no hope .. this is just for an updated grade crossing?

Yes unfortunately

Why would they lodge them there then?

theman8318 wrote:Why would they lodge them there then?

The MBTA had to replace a railroad crossing for the Commuter Rail and the Newburyport Branch branches directly from this line and was an ideal staging area to build the replacement crossing

boo!!!!!

Progress on the rail trail between Wakefield and Lynnfield is on the move again. Back in February the state awarded $500,000 for the towns to hire a designer for the 4.4-mile trail.

On July 12, selectment in Wakefield authorized a request for proposal (RFP). The town will partner with Lynnfield on the project. Once the winning design firm is selected, the communities can begin seeking construction funds to pay for the conversion of the land into a rail trail.

A second RFP would be required for a firm to build the trail.

This project has been on the drawing boards for several years. However, it esitmated the design phase could last up to 18 months and construction another five years.

>>$500,000 for the towns to hire a designer for the 4.4-mile trail.

>>This project has been on the drawing boards for several years. However, it esitmated the design phase could last up to
>>18 months and construction another five years.

This has got to be the poster project for wasting the taxpayers' money: a trail that runs from nowhere to noplace, avoids all of the community recreational areas in both towns, serves no useful commuting function, and runs through a swamp. H**l, gimme the $500K design money and I'll build the &$%#@* trail myself, and I won't take six and a half years to do it. Can you say "boondoggle?" There, I knew you could. Where did I put that shovel ...

PBM

It would be beneficial to open the branch, add new customers on it, and start serving. Gas for the trucks are not cheap these days. Why scale back?

What I find interesting about the rail trail is that no one is even going on record as to what this trail will cost. Town officials keep on saying that it will be paid with state and federal money, and no cost to the towns. One issue that needs to be addressed is the flooding along the right of way. This would be under the route 128 bridge in Wakefield and where the Mill River flows under the tracks near Fosters Lane in Wakefield and that is just for starters. Other issues are the seven roads that cross the right of way in Wakefield: three of these have heavy traffic during the day and another street(New Salem) is used alot by trucks.

I read an article in the Wakefield Item newspapers, dated July 16, 2010 about the potential cost of the rail trail: $5 million.

B&Mguy wrote:I was in Lynnfield and Peabody today, and the line looks like it hasn't changed much since the last time I saw it. I'm wondering how much longer the crossing signals will be up on Route 1 for.

About a week and a half ago, I visited the (exempt) Route 1 grade crossing in Peabody and much to my surprise, the crossing flashers were gone. When I was last there, about two or three months ago, the flashers were there. Also, the track across Lowell Street had since been paved over. The track across Route 1 is still intact and at Lowell Street, there sits an old signal box, meaning that at one time, there were flashers at that crossing as well. I thought the flashers at the Route 1 crossing would never be torn down, nor did I think that the track across Lowell Street would ever be paved over. I wonder why it took fifteen years for those two things to be done?

railfan1988 wrote:

B&Mguy wrote:I was in Lynnfield and Peabody today, and the line looks like it hasn't changed much since the last time I saw it. I'm wondering how much longer the crossing signals will be up on Route 1 for.

About a week and a half ago, I visited the (exempt) Route 1 grade crossing in Peabody and much to my surprise, the crossing flashers were gone. When I was last there, about two or three months ago, the flashers were there. Also, the track across Lowell Street had since been paved over. The track across Route 1 is still intact and at Lowell Street, there sits an old signal box, meaning that at one time, there were flashers at that crossing as well. I thought the flashers at the Route 1 crossing would never be torn down, nor did I think that the track across Lowell Street would ever be paved over. I wonder why it took fifteen years for those two things to be done?

MassDOT was out there in July or August taking down the flashers. That was very recent action.


It's possible they're recycling if the things still work. State has donated some sets of used flashers to Grafton & Upton for their ongoing mainline reactivation. The high-mast set on Route 1 would be particularly valuable if they're still in good condition.

The line officially flipped from OOS to landbanked only about 3 years ago when the rail trail lease was signed, so that is likely why the grade crossings are only being paved over now. Lowell St. is state-maintained on that block from the I-95 underpass to the Route 1 ramps, so pave-over here was MassHighway's call and not the town's.