Northern New England Intercity Rail Initiative proposal

5/25/2018 Northern New England Intercity Rail Initiative proposal

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Public Meetings

White River, VT & Springfield, MA

January 22 and 23, 2014


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Public MeetingsJanuary 22 & 23, 2014

Agenda

Welcome and Introductions Overview Presentation

Discussion

Discussion of Draft Purpose and Need

Questions Project Schedule and Next Steps

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Northern New England Intercity Rail

Initiative (NNEIRI) Partnership

Massachusetts Department of Transportation

Vermont Agency of Transportation

with support from

Federal Railroad Administration

and in collaboration with

Connecticut Department of Transportation

Ministre des Transports du Qubec

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Overview of NNEIRI Project

Overall Project Scope

Examine the potential for operation of more frequent andhigher speed interci ty passenger rai l service on theInland Route and the Boston-to-Montreal corridors.

Ridership potential

Necessary incremental infrastructure improvements Maximize the use of the exist ing rai l corr ido rs

Project Outcomes

NEPA Tier 1 EA/EIS Inland Route Corridor Service Development Plan Boston-to-Montreal Corridor Service Development

Plan

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Overview of NNEIRI Project

Major Work Tasks:

Identify existing passenger and freight operations

Identify institutional issues

Evaluate range of potential travel times

Development of ridership forecasts Alternatives for increased intercity rail

Operational options

Incremental Infrastructure improvements

Opportunities for implementation NEPA Tier 1 EA/EIS

Public involvement

Environmental considerations

Service Development Plan

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State Departments of Transportations in Maine, New Hampshire,

Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut

Vision for New England High Speed and

Intercity Passenger Rail

Downeaster Extension Portland to

Brunswick

NH Capitol Corridor Commuter railextension to Nashua, Manchester and

Concord

Vermont Western Corridor Improvements

MassDOT Knowledge Corridor to restore

Vermonter Route

ConnDOT New Haven Hartford Springfield Project

Service and capacity improvements on

corridor south of Providence, including

connection to TF Green Airport


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MassDOT The Way Forward: A 21st

Century Transportation Plan

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Inland Route Part of the MassDOT Strategic Plan

From the Section Titled:

Unlocking Econom ic Growth in the Commonweal th

The Next 10 Years

Inland Route . will support the expansion of passenger rail by directly

connecting Boston with Springfield, via what is commonly known as the Inland

Route. Funding will cover major rehabilitation along the route. will also support a

future high-speed rail connection to New York City via Springfield.


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Current US Intercity Rail Network &

Designated High Speed Rail Corridors

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Recent Intercity Rail Investment

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Draft Project Purpose Statement

The Purpose of the Northern New England Intercity

Rail Initiative is to provide additional regional traveloptions through improvements to the level and qualityof passenger rail service in the Corridor.

The Corridor rail services would provide improved passenger railtransportation, connecting major cities in New England with smaller

cities and rural areas and internationally to Montreal, to help meetfuture travel demands in the Study Area.

The Project would create a competitive rail transportationalternative to the available automobile, bus, and air service byimplementing more frequent and higher speed intercity passenger

rail service.

The study of the Corridor will focus on incremental infrastructureimprovement alternatives that will seek to maximize the use of theexisting rail lines along the Corridor.

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Summary of Draft Needs

Economic Opportunity

Job access

Expanded transit options for Education Centers

Tourism Responsive to Population and Demographics

Changes transportation preferences

Accommodates existing reliance on public transit

Meets future increase in travel demand

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Project Map

470 Route Miles

Boston to Springfield:

99 Miles

Boston to Montreal:

408 Miles

Boston to New Haven:162 Miles

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Intercity/Higher-Speed Rail Characteristics

Self-Guided intercity passenger ground

transportation

Time competitive door to door with air/auto

Range of 100 to 500 miles

Market-based, not speed-based

Source: 1997 USDOT Report

Feasibility High Speed Ground Transportation13


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Types of Intercity Rail Service

Core express servicesfrequent

trains at 125-250+mph in thenations densest and most

populous regions.

Regional services service(90-125mph) between mid-sized and

large cities.

Emerging services (up to 90mph)connecting communities to the

passenger rail network and

providing a foundation for future

corridor development.14


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FRA Types of Intercity Rail Service

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Public Participation

Stakeholder committee Trans. agencies, transportation providers, and RPA/Cs

Public outreach in MA and VT Four rounds of public meetings

Project website Newsletters/e-bulletins

Local media

Electronic communication

Coordination with other projects/studies New Haven Hartford Springfield,

Vermont State Rail Plan

NEC Futures

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Inclusive Public Participation(Civil Rights Act- Title VI compliant)

Identification of potentially affected communities, including

minority and low-income populations, will require targeted

outreach. Strategies employed by the study will include:

Mapping of corridor environmental justice (EJ) populations(minority, low income and Limited English Proficiency)

Distribution of study information to corridor libraries and socialservice agencies that serve EJ populations

Partnering with staff of regional planning agencies (MPOs andRPCs) knowledgeable about EJ populations regarding successfulengagement methods

Targeted outreach to station area EJ populations

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Track Ownership within the NNEIRI Corridor

Commonwealth of Massachusetts: 44 Miles

CSX: 55 Miles

PanAm Southern: 49 Miles

New England Central Railroad: 206 Miles

Canadian National Railroad: 53 Miles

AMTRAK: 62 Miles

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NNEIRI Corridor Owners

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Commonwealth of Massachusetts: 44 Miles


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CSX: 55 Miles


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Pan Am Southern: 49 Miles


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NECR: 206 Miles


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CN: 53 Miles


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AMTRAK: 62 Miles


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Alternatives Development

The Study will develop a series of alternatives thatmeet the Purpose and Need.

Alternatives will include:

Variations of speed, frequency and fares

Accommodation for operation and growth of freight

Consistency with current and planned projects, and

Incorporation of public input

Once developed, they will be screened against a set of

evaluation criteria.

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Corridor Considerations

Existing use of rail corridor for freight and

passenger operations

Not considering significant route modifications

Environmental considerations such as: Noise and vibration

Historic resources

Natural resources

Customs and immigration

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Infrastructure Considerations

Capacity of existing rail corridor

Track improvements of existing rail alignments

Signal installation/upgrade

Additional requirements for speeds > 79 mph

Grade crossings 404 total

Must be grade separated > 110 mph

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Existing Grade Crossing Warning Devices

Warning Device Number

Gates 105

Flashing Lights 63

Cross Bucks and/or Stop Signs 52

Other 27

NONE 157

Total Grade Crossings 404

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Operating Assumptions

Low speed Existing conditions 60 mph

Mid speed Existing conditions 79-90 - mph max.

High speed No curve restrictions >90 &110 mph max.

Intercity Rail Service Options

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Non-electrified

Train models

Current locomotives & standard coaches

Tilting train equipment

Intercity operation only

Train Performance Calculator (TPC)

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Potential Station Locations

Quebec Montreal (Central Station)

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Massachusetts Vermont Connecticut

Boston (Back Bay

and South Station)

Brattleboro Windsor Locks

Suburban Boston Bellows Falls Windsor

Worcester White RiverJunction Hartford

Palmer Montpelier Meriden

Springfield Waterbury Wallingford

Holyoke Burlington

(Essex Junction)

New Haven

(Union Station)Northampton St. Albans

Greenfield


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Potential Station Attributes

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Existing Amtrak Travel Times(Fastest Available Trip)

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Boston, MA St. Albans, VT New Haven, CT

Boston, MA - 9:02* 1:57

Springfield, MA 2:15 5:42 1:20

White River

Junction, VT

6:31* 2:28 5:13

St. Albans, VT 9:02* - 7:35

Hartford, CT 3:37* 6:47 0:47

New Haven, CT 1:57 7:35 -

Montreal, QC 21:40* N/A 18:30*Source: Amtrak Trip Planner

*Requires Transfer


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Ridership Estimation Process

Intercity RailOperating Assumptions

PotentialStation Locations

Range of Intercity

Travel Times

Travel

Survey

Forecast

Model

Ridership

Estimates

Existing

Travel Data

Regional

Travel Models

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Project Schedule

Draft Purpose and Need 12/27/13

Service projections ridership 03/18/14

Preliminary alternatives 09/12/14 Finalize alternatives 10/31/14

Service Development Plans 09/03/15

Complete NEPA process 09/25/15

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Thank You

Questions and Discussion

Follow-up Meeting Comments to:

[email protected]

www.mass.gov/massdot/northernnewenglandrail

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mailto:[email protected]://www.mass.gov/massdot/northernnewenglandrailhttp://www.mass.gov/massdot/northernnewenglandrailmailto:[email protected]

Documents

Northern New England Intercity Rail Initiative proposal