Berkshire Scenic Railways Clears Key Hurdle, Christmas Rides Uncertain

(SOURCE: Berkshire Eagle - Adam Shanks)


NORTH ADAMS — A federal green light has raised hopes that the Berkshire Scenic Railway's Hoosac Valley Service could be up and running before Christmas. 

A decision issued by the Surface Transportation Board last week should allow the Massachusetts Department of Transportation to acquire the 4.6 miles of railroad between Adams and downtown North Adams from privately owned rail company PanAm Southern.

Scenic Railway operators and state and local officials are working feverishly to close the deal before the holidays, a prime time for theme rides that could attract customers.

In a Facebook post on Sunday, the Hoosac Valley Service stated that, despite the federal ruling, PanAm and MassDOT still must close on the sale.

"We remain hopeful this can be accomplished before the weekend of Dec. 19, but at this time we are not able to offer Christmas trains," the post stated. "If that should change, we will immediately announce a schedule."

The state is purchasing the stretch of railroad, which had exclusively been used for freight, to allow the Stockbridge-based Berkshire Scenic Railway Museum to run its Hoosac Valley Service scenic train rides between Adams and North Adams.

Unveiled in 2013, the Hoosac Valley Service is expected to draw thousands of train enthusiasts, tourists, and locals to take a slow ride between neighboring towns in the Berkshire Scenic Railway's restored rail cars.

The proposed agreement between PanAm and MassDOT provides the private company with an easement for continued use of the rails, and the planned weekend Scenic Railway rides would not conflict with ongoing freight transportation.

MassDOT first applied for approval of the transaction with PanAm on Aug. 14, according to the decision by the Surface Transportation Board, which oversees railroad sales in the United States. However, MassDOT later filed a motion to dismiss that application, claiming that the board's approval was not actually necessary because MassDOT "would acquire neither the right nor the ability to provide railroad common carrier service over the railroad assets, and it would be contractually precluded from interfering with [PanAm's] operations."

In its decision, the Surface Transportation Board agreed with MassDOT, stating that the transaction did not require its approval.

Initially, the train will operate between American Legion Drive in North Adams and Renfrew Street in Adams. The state also has plans to extend the rail further, less than one mile, from Renfrew Street to a newly constructed Adams Station on Hoosac Street in Adams.

The state-backed project got off to a well-received, but temporary, start over Columbus Day weekend thanks to a one-time agreement for use of the railway. Since then, the railway has been waiting for a permanent agreement to begin rides again.

Berkshire Scenic Looks Forward to Resumption of Train Service in 2015

(SOURCE:  Trains.com Newswire)

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. – Passenger cars and a locomotive have arrived at the site of Berkshire Scenic Railway Museum's planned "Hoosac Valley Service" at North Adams, Mass., and the organization hopes that trains will begin to run over the former New York Central branch next spring.

The Berkshire Scenic, based in Lenox, had carried more than one million riders over a nine-year period on trains running over nine miles of Housatonic Railroad. The host railroad chose to not renew the operating agreement three years ago, and since then the all-volunteer Berkshire Scenic has worked closely with state officials and leaders in North Adams and Adams to begin running trains between those two communities, located about 30 miles north of Lenox. The trains will use tracks currently owned by Pan Am Southern, which were once part of a NYC line that connected Pittsfield with North Adams.

Berkshire Scenic Vice President Jay Green tells Trains News Wire that plans call for the railroad’s excursion trains to have access to the line from Friday evening through the weekend, and on Federal holidays. Pan Am Southern will continue to serve two freight customers on the tracks at other times. Negotiations are underway for the Commonwealth of Massachusetts to purchase the rail line from Pan Am Southern, he says.

Green says that Berkshire Scenic will offer frequent downtown-to-downtown service, allowing riders originating at either end of the line to shop or have lunch during their layover at the other end.

In the past two weeks, Berkshire Scenic Railway's former New York Central SW8 No. 8619; a former Baltimore & Ohio combine; and a former New York, New Haven & Hartford caboose moved from the headquarters at Lenox to North Adams. The move used a circuitous routing including the Housatonic Railroad, CSX Transportation, and Pan Am Southern. Pan Am later delivered a former Boston & Maine Budd RDC-1 and a onetime Pennsylvania Railroad baggage car that had come from Maine and Boston, respectively. Two refurbished former Delaware, Lackawanna & Western coaches owned by the state are to be trucked or moved by rail flatcar to the site, according to Green.

The Massachusetts Department of Transportation's engineering contractor is working on a refurbishing plan for the current four miles of track, and is developing a joint use design with an existing bikeway in order to re-install an additional mile of track at the south of end of the route. Most funding has come through the state, and all track improvements will also benefit freight, Green says. The town of Adams has purchased a former carwash adjacent to the end of the tracks that are to be restored. It will be used as a station, featuring local historical rail-themed exhibits. The city of North Adams has plans to install a pedestrian tunnel under Pan Am's freight main to connect the local boarding area with the North Adams Heritage Park.

The caboose has been repainted in NYC Century Green, and is lettered "Hoosac Valley.” It will serve as a crew office at North Adams. The combine, which previously served as Berkshire Scenic’s Gilded Age exhibit car at Lenox, has undergone a complete exterior renovation to become Hoosac Valley No. 1444, named North Adams. It will serve as a welcome center, housing a ticket office, gift shop, tourist information, waiting room, and an educational theater. The exterior and some interior work was funded by a $200,000 Developing Western Massachusetts Tourism & Cultural Facilities grant. The electronics for the theatre and a new point-of-sale system for tickets and merchandise were funded by a $25,000 Pittsfield Economic Revitalization Corp. Technology Grant, Green says.

Berkshire Scenic's restored New Haven Railroad station at Lenox, as well as the yard and display tracks that have been constructed over the years, will remain the organization's headquarters. Depending upon volunteer availability, the museum hopes to continue to offer weekend jitney rides and yard tours at Lenox. The museum's other property, the former New Haven station at Stockbridge, is leased to the Stockbridge Public Library.


FROM THE BERKSHIRE SCENIC'S WEBSITE: 

Fun and educational train rides will return to the Berkshires! In cooperation with the Massachusetts Department of Transportation, City of North Adams and Town of Adams, Berkshire Scenic will be offering train rides once again! 

 

Located in the beautiful footprint of Mount Greylock, BSRM's Hoosac Valley Service will offer weekend downtown-to-downtown service with convenient train schedules for visiting both historic communities by train and special events for the whole family! 

 

This complex project is constantly developing! For information on when operations will begin follow the latest developments on the Hoosac Valley Service's own FACEBOOK page. Be sure to visit BSRM's Hoosac Valley Service website for more information about this exciting project. 

Berkshire Scenic to Bring Train Rides to North Adams, Adams MA

(source: By Andy McKeever -  iBerkshires.com)

NORTH ADAMS, Mass. — Scenic railroad rides are returning to the Berkshires in 2014.

The Berkshire Scenic Railway Museum, the town of Adams and the city have partnered to create the Hoosac Valley Service, which will transport passengers on a 25-minute ride from the Adams Visitors Center to Western Gateway Heritage State Park in North Adams.

The service is designed to boost tourism and increase business in the city and town's downtown, which officials hope will spur greater expansion and business.

According to state Department of Transportation, the Berkshire Scenic Railway has carried more than 100,000 passengers and contributed more than $4 million to the local economy through its South County operations.

The project will coincide with the extension of the Ashuwillticook Rail Trail and the two will share 6/10th of a mile of track in Adams.

At a press conference Friday, representatives of the three entities said MassDOT has secured funding for re-engineering of the rail trail and a mile of new track in Adams that will be built from Burke Construction (at the entrance of the Adams Corporate Park) to the Visitors Center and to purchase the tracks from Pan Am. The state has also made a commitment to provide construction money afterward.

The tracks will be state-owned with a lease to Berkshire Scenic and certain rights-of-way to Pan Am.

Museum officials said they will bring one or two locomotives and three to four coaches to operate six to 10 rides on the weekends and holidays. The museum will also continue its special events, which were lost when Housatonic Railroad Co. refused to renew a lease for use of the tracks from Lenox to Stockbridge, such as the Polar Express and wine tastings. Officials said the disagreement with Housatonic accelerated this project.

"We anticipate a lot of special events," Berkshire Scenic Director Jay Green said, adding that a Hoosac Tunnel "ghost ride" is already being planned. While they won't have access to the tunnel itself, the trip will feature a history lesson of it.

The line will run from behind the Brien Center on American Legion Drive, across Hodges Cross Road and Renfrew and Cook streets in Adams before ending at the Visitors Center.

A fence will be installed separating the trail from the rail until the last section in Adams, where the two will come together. According to Marge Cohan, president of the Berkshire Bike Path Council and supporter of the venture, trails that share with rail lines have proven to be safe.

The partnership not only provides tracks for the Scenic Railway but also emphasizes areas both municipalities are hoping to further develop.

In North Adams, Alcombright is hoping to privatize and revitalize Heritage State Park. However, he said, there is still a hurdle in getting people from American Legion Drive to the park on the other side of the tracks.

"I don't see it as a detriment to the service. Maybe this creates a more walkable environment," Alcombright said.

The mayor also sees potential with partnering with the Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts for educational opportunities — such as having theater students help with the special events.

The Hoosac Valley Service will run east of Route 8, across Hodges Cross Road, across Renfrew and Cook streets and end at the Adams Visitors Center.

"This is another piece of what could be a successful Heritage State Park," he said.

In Adams, the town took control of the Visitors Center when the Berkshire Visitors Bureau moved to Pittsfield.

Adams has been on a mission to brand itself as a recreational center and is working toward revitalizing  the downtown. This project will help move both of those efforts along, according to Town Administrator Jonathan Butler.

"This is going to open up a lot of opportunities for the Visitors Center," Butler said, adding that the museum will use the Visitors Center to sell tickets.

Butler said "literally delivering thousands of people to downtown Adams" will help capitalize on the recent renovation projects to downtown facades. He called this partnership a "stepping stone to bigger and better things."

For Berkshire Scenic, the Hoosac Valley Service is something it's been trying to start since the 1980s. Green said there was nearly an agreement in 1985 but it fell through.

"We're extremely grateful to be back," Green, who was the city's administrative officer under Alcombright and former Mayor John Barrett III. "We've been trying to operate train rides up here since 1985."

The museum may purchase a used Budd Car train for the new endeavor. The museum now has two stations with no access to tracks in South County and a section of track with no stations in North County. Butler said he will be working with the museum to find it a more permanent home.

The talks began between about six entities — MassDOT, Adams, North Adams, Berkshire Scenic, state Department of Conservation and Recreation and Pan Am — for this project in 2011. The discussion made headway right about the time the rail-trail extension was set to go to bid. Butler said this addition delayed the contract for the extension by a couple months but the extension should be under construction in the spring.

"This came to be right when the bike path was set to state," Alcombright said. "This was an incredibly collaborative effort."

The exact cost has not yet been figured but officials said they are "comfortable" that the state will follow through. MassDOT representatives were at Friday's press conference in support of the project.

Also in attendance Friday were state Rep. Gailanne Cariddi, D-North Adams, and state Sen. Benjamin Downing, D-Pittsfield.

"It is really going to be a tremendous boost to our economy," Cariddi said.

Berkshire Chamber of Commerce President Michael Supranowicz said he is currently working on an economic impact study to see exactly what it will be mean for the local economy.

"There will be a huge economic impact," Supranowicz said. "It will be real important to have those destination stops."