HARTFORD, Conn. — New trains, improved stations and more parking are needed immediately to get commuters off the highways and keep pace with the growing demand for rail transit, according to a set of preliminary recommendations reviewed yesterday by state transportation planners.
The Stamford Advocate reports that the 15-member Transportation Strategy Board, which met at the Capitol yesterday, was appointed last year by the governor and the General Assembly to solve transportation problems and is rapidly approaching its Dec. 17 deadline to make its final recommendations.
Expanding commuter rail service in Connecticut is expected to be a major priority of the board. But the TSB is not likely to support moving additional freight by rail.
Although the local advisory board to the TSB recommended the state support the construction of a proposed $3 billion rail freight tunnel under New York Harbor to move more goods by train, the full board dismissed the plan yesterday, saying it’s too costly and holds little, if any, benefit for Connecticut.
“Rail is a nice thought, but it’s not going to work,” said TSB member Joseph Maco, vice president of Sound Pilots coastal navigation in Bridgeport.
Maco and other board members said money would be better spent in developing an adequate port in Bridgeport or New Haven to establish a feeder barge service in Connecticut.
The TSB is considering recommendations totaling more than $3 billion, according to some preliminary estimates provided by the board yesterday, that would greatly expand capacity passenger service on Metro-North Railroad’s New Haven Line and all three of its branches and possibly add service from New Haven to Hartford and Springfield, Mass.
The board also is looking to increase service on the Shore Line East commuter rail service from New Haven to New London and overcome technical challenges that prohibit Shore Line East trains from operating in Grand Central Terminal.
To address overcrowding on trains, where usage is growing at an average of 1.5 percent a year, the board discussed the possibility of purchasing double-decker trains. Past studies have shown that double-decker trains operating on the Long Island Rail Road would not fit into Grand Central Terminal’s tunnels. A new study is looking at possible design modifications and using the higher capacity trains for service within the state.
Delivery of new trains can take up to eight years, making the need for rehabilitating the 30-year-old fleet more urgent. One of the board’s top priorities is expected to be the construction of larger train maintenance facilities in New Haven to keep the aging trains on track.
“Realistically, we’re buying the luxury of time to make a decision,” said James Byrnes, acting commissioner of the Department of Transportation. “We’re trying to buy 15 years of reliable service, and this will give us the flexibility to phase in new cars.”
The TSB also is expected to endorse the concept of creating rail hubs along the New Haven Line with connections to other transit modes and parking for more than 1,000 cars. Stamford, Bridgeport and New Haven fit the criteria, and other stations, such as South Norwalk, may be added.
The board also may recommend lengthening station platforms to accommodate longer trains. They may also propose electrifying branch lines up to the Merritt Parkway to allow commuters from inland communities to travel all the way to Grand Central without transferring. This would reduce the demand for parking on the New Haven Line. They also may propose creating more points where trains can switch tracks to provide more flexibility for express and local trains.
Feeder barge service is also in the top five recommendations of the Coastal Corridor Transportation Investment Area representing Fairfield and New Haven counties. Barges are envisioned as a way to carry freight from the Port of New York and New Jersey to Connecticut without using Interstate 95 locally.
TSB Chairman R. Nelson “Oz” Griebel said the board is not opposed to the rail tunnel project, but it’s “not prepared to jump on the bandwagon of the Cross Harbor Tunnel at this point.”