(SOURCE: New England Public Radio)
Massachusetts officials announced Wednesday the state has an
agreement to purchase the right-of-way for nearly fifty miles of
railroad running between Greenfield and Springfield. Amtrak service is
scheduled to begin late this year on the line, but a more regular
commuter service is far from a done deal.
Several Massachusetts officials including Governor Deval Patrick
pulled into Greenfield on a special train from North Adams to announce
the deal between the state and Pan-Am Railways. This could open the door
to a north-south commuter rail service in the future. Department of
Transportation head Richard Davey says while there is money to refurbish
old train cars the state already owns, there is still one key
ingredient missing to make this a reality.
“When you’re talking about a service over a long period of time, on
an annual basis, you have to come up with some revenue,” Davey says. “So
at this point we don’t have it, but I don’t think it’s that much
either. We’re coming up with some calculations to give a sense to the
legislature and the next administration what it would be.”
State officials are targeting December 29 as the day Amtrak’s
Vermonter service will begin using the line. To start, one train is
expected to run in each direction daily
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