MBTA Commuter Rail
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| Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad (MBCR) | |
|---|---|
 MBTA Commuter Rail provides commuter service from Boston as far north as Haverhill, as far south as Kingston, and as far west as Worcester. |
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| Reporting mark | MBTA |
| Locale | Eastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island |
| Dates of operation | 1973–present |
| Track gauge | 1,435 mm (4 ft 81⁄2 in) |
| Headquarters | Boston, MA |
The Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad Company (MBCR) Co. serves as the regional rail arm of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, in the United States. MBCR is joint partnership of three transportation companies including: Veolia Transportation, Bombardier and Alternate Concepts, Inc.[1] MBCR was chosen by the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA)'s Board of Directors to manage and operate the commuter rail system in eastern Massachusetts, taking over the previous venture between the MBTA and Amtrak, on July 1, 2003.[2] The original operating contract of MBCR covered a span of five years. In December 2008 the MBTA's Board of Directors voted to extended the contract of MBCR for an additional period of three years expiring in June 2011.[3]
The commuter rail system is the fifth-busiest commuter rail in the country, after only New York and Chicago systems. The line's characteristic purple-trimmed coaches run as far south as Providence, Rhode Island, and as far north as Newburyport and as far west as Worcester, both in Massachusetts. The trains have two terminal stops in Boston—South Station and North Station—both transportation hubs offering connections to Amtrak, local bus and subway lines. As of FY2007, daily weekday ridership was 143,700.[4]
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[edit] Current lines
The eight lines of the Commuter Rail leaving from South Station, from southeast to west:
- Greenbush Line, to Greenbush
- Old Colony Lines, to Plymouth and Kingston / Route 3 and to Middleborough/Lakeville
- Fairmount Line, to Readville, with trains continuing along the Providence/Stoughton and Franklin Lines
- Providence/Stoughton Line, to Stoughton and to Providence, Rhode Island
- Franklin Line, to Forge Park–495
- Needham Line, to Needham Heights
- Framingham/Worcester Line, to Worcester
Trains run to Foxboro for certain special events at Gillette Stadium, via a spur between the Providence/Stoughton Line and Franklin Line.
The four lines of the Commuter Rail leaving from North Station, from west to northeast:
- Fitchburg Line, to Fitchburg
- Lowell Line, to Lowell
- Haverhill/Reading Line, to Haverhill
- Newburyport/Rockport Line, to Newburyport and Rockport
[edit] Operational history
In 1973, the MBTA bought various Commuter Rail lines from private owners.
The Boston and Maine Railroad was contracted to run service on the Lowell Line and other North-side lines, which it had formerly owned, while the Penn Central, and later Conrail, operated the remaining southern lines. Later, Conrail ceased subsidized passenger rail services, and the Boston and Maine won the contract for the entire system. After bankruptcy, the B&M continued to run and fulfill its contract under the protection of the Federal Bankruptcy Court, in the hopes that a reorganization could make it profitable again. It emerged from the court's protection when newly formed Guilford Transportation Industries (GTI) bought it, in 1983. GTI let the contract expire in 1986.
In 1986–2003, Amtrak managed all of Boston's Commuter Rail.[2] MBTA observers see Amtrak as having been a reliable manager/operator;[citation needed] but the National Passenger Railroad Corporation sometimes experienced strained relations with the MBTA.[citation needed] Quibbles centered on equipment failures, crewing issues about the number of conductors per train, and responsibility for late trains.[citation needed] Because of these issues, and Amtrak's repeated statements that the MBTA contract was unreasonable, few were surprised at Amtrak's decision not to bid again for the MBTA Commuter Rail contract when at its 2003 renewal.[3]
When the MBTA asked for tenders on the Commuter Rail operation contract, Amtrak did not bid.[citation needed] Two tenders were submitted, from Guilford Rail System and from the Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad Company (MBCR), the latter of which won, taking over the MBTA Commuter Rail operation from Amtrak in July 2003.[5] The MBCR contract originally expired in July 2008; it has since been extended to July 2011.[citation needed]
The MBCR is a joint venture of Veolia Transportation North America (formerly Connex); Bombardier Transportation, which has manufactured some of the vehicles in the MBTA fleet; and Alternate Concepts, Inc.,[6] majority owner of Paul Revere Transportation, which operates some bus lines under contract from the MBTA.[7] Richard A. Davey currently serves as the MBCR's General Manager.
Some freight train companies lease the right to operate on MBTA-owned track, including the Providence and Worcester Railroad, CSX Transportation, the Bay Colony Railroad, Pan Am Railways (formerly Guilford Rail System), and Fore River Transportation.[8]
[edit] Expansion and improvements
Several extensions of and improvements to the MBTA Commuter Rail network are in debate or under way.
[edit] South Station Lines
A controversial extension of the Stoughton Line is proposed to Taunton, Massachusetts, Fall River, Massachusetts, and New Bedford, Massachusetts.[9][10] Critics argue that building the extension does not make economic sense.[11]
A Providence Line extension to T. F. Green Airport, in Warwick, Rhode Island, is being constructed.
In September 2009, CSX Transportation and the commonwealth finalized a $100 million agreement to purchase CSX's Framingham to Worcester tracks, as well as some other track, to improve service on the Framingham/ Worcester Line.[12] A liability issue that had held up the agreement [13][14] was resloved.
[edit] North Station lines
There is a proposal to build a South Salem Commuter Rail station in Salem, Massachusetts, to improve access to Salem State College, as well as to extend Commuter Rail to Peabody, Massachusetts and Danvers, Massachusetts.[15]
There is a plan to upgrade the Fitchburg Line to have cab signaling and to construct a second track between South Acton, and Ayer Junction, which is shared with freight traffic, so that the Fitchburg to Boston trip will be able to take only about an hour.[16]
The state Secretary of Transportation James Aloisi has also indicated support for commuter service from Worcester to North Station via Clinton and Ayer, presumably along the Worcester, Nashua and Rochester Railroad right of way, owned by Pan Am Railways as of 2009.[17]
The state of New Hampshire has created the New Hampshire Rail Transit Authority and allocated money to build platforms at Nashua and Manchester.[18] However, the current plan is for passengers heading from these New Hampshire stations to have to change trains in Lowell, Massachusetts when traveling to Boston.[19]
An article in the Eagle Tribune claims that Massachusetts is negotiating to buy property which has the potential to extend the Haverhill Line to Plaistow, New Hampshire. Funding is available, and Plaistow is potentially interested, but wants to better understand the potential drawbacks of being the location of the layover station.[20][21]
[edit] North-South Rail Link
No direct connection exists between the two downtown terminals; to travel from one station to the other, passengers must use the MBTA subway or the street. While passengers using the Providence/Stoughton, Framingham/Worcester, Franklin, and Needham lines can transfer to and from North Station at Back Bay via the Orange Line subway, all other passengers have to change subway trains at either Park Street or Downtown Crossing stations. A North-South Rail Link has been proposed to unite the two halves of the Commuter Rail system; but, because of the high cost, Massachusetts has, as of May 2006, withdrawn its sponsorship of the proposal. Train cars are transferred between the two halves of the system via the Grand Junction Railroad, which is not used for passenger service.
[edit] Equipment
MBTA Commuter Rail service from both stations is provided by push-pull trains powered by diesel locomotives, although some of the lines run on the electrified Northeast Corridor. Newer EMD F40PH and F40PH-2C locomotives and Kawasaki bi-level passenger cars are typically used for trains that originate from South Station with EMD GP40MC locomotives, older F40PHs and single-level passenger cars used from North Station. The railroad also operates one EMD GP9 and a GP40 as work locomotives. 75 new bi-levels are also on order from Rotem.[22]
[edit] See also
- Big Dig (Boston, Massachusetts)
- Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority
- North-South Rail Link
- List of United States commuter rail systems by ridership
[edit] References
- ^ "Our partnerships". Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad Company (MBCR) Co.. 2009-02-02. http://www.mbcr.net/partnerships.html. "The MBTA Board of Directors officially approved a new three-year contract with the Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad Co. to run the commuter rail."
- ^ a b "AMTRAK RIVAL GETS CONTRACT FOR T RAIL PRIVATE GROUP SET TO TAKE OVER JULY 1". Boston Globe - Mac Daniel. 2002-12-13. http://search.boston.com/local/Search.do?s.sm.query=Amtrak&s.author=&s.si%20simplesearchinput%20.sortBy=-articlePRINTpublicationdate&docType=&s.collections=&date=&s.startDate=2002-12-13&s.endDate=2002-12-14#4550700564500587531. "Under the $1.07 billion, five-year contract, the Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad will take over running the nation's fifth-largest commuter rail system on July 1. The MBTA's contract with Massachusetts Bay marks the end of the T's stormy relationship with Amtrak, which has run the service since 1986. Amtrak dropped out of the bidding process for the contract in July, saying the terms of the contract were too costly."
- ^ a b "MBTA signs three-year deal with MBCR". Boston Metro. 2008-06-06. http://www.metrobostonnews.com/us/article/2008/06/06/05/4402-66/index.xml. "The MBTA Board of Directors officially approved a new three-year contract with the Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad Co. to run the commuter rail."
- ^ American Public Transportation Association, Commuter Rail Ridership Report, Fourth Quarter 2007.
- ^ Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad Company.
- ^ Partnerships.
- ^ Paul Revere Transportation.
- ^ Transportation System Performance-Commuter Rail.
- ^ boston.com.
- ^ www.eot.state.ma.us.
- ^ www.thesunchronicle.com.
- ^ Deal expected to boost commuter rail service, Boston Globe September 24, 2009
- ^ [1]
- ^ www.boston.com
- ^ mbta.com.
- ^ telegram.com.
- ^ MBTA warns of cuts / Transportation future hot topic by Priyanka Dayal. Worcester Telegram, 28 April 2009.
- ^ www.nh.gov.
- ^ www.nashuarpc.org.
- ^ eagletribune.com.
- ^ eagletribune.com.
- ^ www.koreatimes.co.kr.
[edit] External links
- Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad Company (MBCR)
- MBCR - Key people
- MBTA Commuter Rail
- MBTA Commuter Rail profile and photos
- How MBTA rebuilt ridership - Railway Age article from Nov 1991. Contains history of MBTA Commuter Rail system.
- MBTA daily rail operations visualized (Java applet, unofficial)
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