CSX Focuses On Two Major Projects, More Fluid Network
Introducing The Rising Stars Of 2025
From The Editor: Of Tariffs And A ‘Trade Storm’
Women of Influence in Rail eBook
Newsletter Sign Up
Stay updated on news, articles and information for the rail industry
Stay updated on news, articles and information for the rail industry
railPrime
RAIL EMPLOYMENT & NOTICES
Rail News Home
Passenger Rail
Rail News: Passenger Rail
12/16/2009
Rail News: Passenger Rail
Massachusetts, MBTA dignitaries launch Fitchburg line improvements
advertisement
On Monday, Massachusetts Gov. Deval Patrick, Rep. John Olver (D-Mass.), and several Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) and local officials marked the groundbreaking of the Fitchburg Commuter-Rail Improvement Project — the commonwealth’s first rail infrastructure improvement project funded by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act (ARRA).
MBTA will receive $10.2 million in stimulus dollars for the first stage of the project, which is designed to improve speed, service and reliability on the Fitchburg line, Massachusetts’ oldest commuter-rail line. The agency will obtain an additional $39 million in ARRA funding for double-tracking work and $150 million in federal New Starts funding for the entire project, which calls for installing switches, signals and a universal crossover, renovating two stations and reconstructing track.
The project will enable MBTA to increase train speed to 80 mph, boost on-time performance by about 12 percent, and reduce operating and maintenance costs on the 50-mile-long corridor between Fitchburg and Boston.
MBTA will receive $10.2 million in stimulus dollars for the first stage of the project, which is designed to improve speed, service and reliability on the Fitchburg line, Massachusetts’ oldest commuter-rail line. The agency will obtain an additional $39 million in ARRA funding for double-tracking work and $150 million in federal New Starts funding for the entire project, which calls for installing switches, signals and a universal crossover, renovating two stations and reconstructing track.
The project will enable MBTA to increase train speed to 80 mph, boost on-time performance by about 12 percent, and reduce operating and maintenance costs on the 50-mile-long corridor between Fitchburg and Boston.
