State Legislator Could Lose Rights to NH Railroad Line

(Source: Union Leader.com - By MARK HAYWARD)

Long under scrutiny for his use of a state-owned railroad line, a Peterborough state representative could end up losing access to the 18 1/2-mile line, which runs between Wilton and Bennington.

Peter Leishman, owner of Milford-Bennington Railroad Company, said he’s currently using the track without the blessings of state transportation officials.

They even returned payments he tried to send them last year, said Leishman, a Democrat from Peterborough.

In the meantime, another company — possibly Pan Am Railways — could end up winning a state contract that would give it control of the track, challenging Leishman’s ability to use it.

Leishman uses the line to transport stone from a quarry to a Milford concrete business.

“None of this makes any sense,” Leishman said. For 20 years, he had an exceptional relationship with the state Department of Transportation, he said.......... READ WHOLE ARTICLE

MBTA Testing for Bio-hazards on the T

NECN.com - MBTA Testing for Bio-hazards on the T

(NECN: Jackie Bruno, Boston) - The Department of Homeland Security and the MBTA are working to test a system of newly developed biological detection sensors at MBTA stations in Cambridge and Somerville this summer. 

The effort, to detect and minimize any impacts from an attack or accident involving hazardous biological materials in a mass transportation system, is being coordinated with the Massachusetts Department of Public Health, the Cambridge Public Health Department, and the Somerville Health Department, with support from the Massachusetts Emergency Management Agency.

It's important to note that the materials they're using are safe and will not harm people... but they are conducting biological tests in the T this week... to see how fast a biological terror attack could spread. 

Davis Square was tested Tuesday night. 

Harvard Square and Porter Square will be tested this week... and they're doing this overnight... when people aren't on the trains. Earlier this year, the department of homeland security and the MBTA installed sensors to help officials identify and contain biological terror attacks. 

These tests will make sure they work. While these tests won't harm anyone, the threat of a biological terror attack is real.

NECN Reporter Jackie Bruno asked people who ride the trains if that's something they think about and are worried about. 

"When you're stuck down there in the little tube you worry about a lot of things, but you can't let it stop your normal routines for the day," South Boston Resident Scott Luther said.

"I don't necessarily think about it. I think it's a good idea that they take these initiatives to do the testing and make it for a more safe community," Arlington Resident Joe Opalinski said.

This is one of the first subway systems in the country that is being tested with this equipment. 

If it works, it could be the model for other transportation systems throughout the nation. 

MA Lawmakers Announce Conn River Rail Construction

Boston.com - Mass. lawmakers announce rail construction:

State and federal lawmakers from Massachusetts have announced efforts to restore passenger rail service along the Connecticut River valley.

Lt. Gov. Timothy Murray joined Democratic U.S. Reps. John Olver and Richard Neal as well as Holyoke Mayor Alex Morse on Monday to look at a potential site for the city's passenger rail platform.

They also announced that on-going construction will replace 20,000 rail tiles from Greenfield to the Vermont border to bring rail service to Northampton and Greenfield in 2014.

The project is funded through a $73 million federal grant under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. The construction would relocate Amtrak's Vermonter passenger train lines back to its prior route on the Pan Am Southern Railroad. The line runs from northern Vermont to Washington D.C

Middlebury-Pittsford Vermont Rail Spur Project on Hold Indefinitely

Middlebury-Pittsford, Vt., rail spur project put on hold indefinitely - A proposed $32 million rail spur that would be used to alleviate truck traffic between marble processor Omya Inc.'s quarry in Middlebury and its calcium carbonate plant in Pittsford has been put on hold indefinitely...............

Numbers Show Maine Rail Traffic Has Tripled on Local Lines

Numbers show rail traffic has tripled on local lines: Aug. 29 edition: ST. JOHN VALLEY - Local rail traffic has been on the rise in the past year, according to the Maine Department of Transportation. The state-owned rail lines that run from Grindsto...

Boston Subway Activates Countdown Signs

(Via the Trains.com Newswire)

BOSTON – The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority activated countdown signs at its South Station subway stop this week. The signs tell riders when the next trains will arrive, the start of a pilot program that could be extended to all 51 Red, Orange, and Blue Line stations by the end of the year, the agency announced.

The arrival times, ticking down in one-minute increments, will appear on LED signs that have hung above platforms and in station lobbies since 2007 but that until now have displayed only the date, time, and announcements.

Although the agency has moved ahead with technology providing predictions online, and through smartphone applications, it has lagged behind many other cities’ systems in telling customers in stations when a train is coming. The Washington Metro has displayed predictions since 2000, and New York began installing countdown signs in 2007, the Boston Globe reported.

If the South Station start-up succeeds, Park Street station will be added later this month, then Downtown Crossing in September. They will be monitored for at least a month while features are added and adjusted, with other stations to follow in batches of three.

BOOK: Boston & Maine Memories - The Photos of Preston Johnson

I recently got a great deal on a book called "Boston & Maine Memories: The photography and career of Preston Johnson", by George and Katherine Melvin.  It is a hardcover book, 11 pages long, and filled with mostly black & white photos from the steam era.  Chapters cover the Central Mass, Cheshire, Conn River, Lexington, and Claremont branches, the Fitchburg, New Hampshire, Western, and Eastern routes, and Boston area.  If you are at all into the Boston & Maine, you will like this book!