MassDOT secures $3.5M in FRA funds for West-East Rail

The Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) has secured $3.5 million in federal funds to continue advancing the West-East Rail plan, Gov. Maura Healy announced yesterday.

The federal funding was awarded to MassDOT's Rail and Transit Division through the Federal Railroad Administration’s Corridor Identification and Development Program. The funds will be used to support the Boston-Albany corridor service development plan, which is an essential step in expanding and improving passenger-rail service connecting Boston and Albany, New York, through Springfield, Massachusetts, according to a press release issued by Healey's office.

The service development plan will outline MassDOT’s implementation proposal for service expansion and is developed cooperatively with the FRA. The plan will demonstrate the feasibility of a Boston-to-Albany intercity passenger-rail route, and will detail the necessary steps to implement the service. The plan also will identify the need for the service, include a comparative analysis of viable alternatives, define the recommended capital projects to enable the service, and evaluate the operational, network and financial impacts of the service and infrastructure investment.

It will also include an operating plan, a corridor project inventory and an investment case. Public and stakeholder input will be included in the plan's development, state officials said.

Including the $3.5 million grant, MassDOT and the state's federal delegation have secured a total of $150 million in federal funding to advance West-East Rail.

“We are full steam ahead on building West-East Rail, and this latest federal funding win brings us one step closer to delivering this for Massachusetts,” said Healey. “I’m grateful for the hard work of our MassDOT team to secure this funding. Together, we’re going to expand rail service across the state to improve commutes, reduce congestion and usher in new housing and economic development opportunities.”