With construction on the interstates, proposed rail service from New Haven to Springfield, Mass., and Tweed New Haven Regional Airport searching for ways to stay in business, Connecticut has become a hub of transportation transformation. Follow continuing coverage here from the New Haven Register.
Tuesday, December 17, 2019
CTDOT eAlert: News from the Connecticut Department of Transportation
The Hartford Line saw record train ridership between New Haven and Springfield during Thanksgiving weekend. The Connecticut Department of Transportation (CTDOT) ran extra CTrail Hartford Line trains on November 26-27 and December 1st.
CTDOT deployed 10 additional CTrail trains on the Tuesday and Wednesday before Thanksgiving and four additional trains on the Sunday after. The added trains were scheduled 5-10 minutes after Amtrak trains. The CTrail trains provided additional seats to alleviate overcrowding on many sold-out Amtrak trains.
"The extra trains were a resounding success and surpassed expectations," said CTDOT Commissioner Joseph Giulietti. "Our preparation and teamwork paid off."
In 2018, more than 3,500 passengers chose CTrail and Amtrak the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, setting a one-day ridership record. This year the Hartford Line carried more than 4,000 riders the Wednesday before Thanksgiving – a new ridership record. Last year on the Sunday after Thanksgiving, the Hartford Line carried more than 3,000 riders; this year there were more than 3,600 riders.
"We are very happy to announce the success of these additional Hartford Line trains which met the heavy travel demand," said Richard Andreski, CTDOT Public Transportation Bureau Chief. "It was great to see everyone pull together to accomplish this – Amtrak, CTrail crews and CTDOT staff."
"People in Connecticut have wanted this rail system for a long time and are using it to avoid the headaches of driving," said Carl Jackson, CTDOT Rail Administrator. "It was great to see everyone on these busy holiday trains."
Information about all rail services in Connecticut is available at www.CTrail.com.
The Connecticut Department of Transportation (CTDOT) is in the beginning stages of purchasing a new fleet of rail cars. An initial public survey was launched September 12, 2019 and closed October 14, 2019. The Department received a significant number of responses that provided great insight into what customers would like to see in the state's next generation of rail cars. However, the project team has realized that the procurement process would benefit from additional customer insight via a short follow-up survey. A link to this follow-up survey is shown below.It should take approximately 5 to 8 minutes to complete.
Robust participation in this survey will provide further input on customer preferences and support CTDOT as the Department works to make sure the new rail cars meet customers' needs.
MTA Metro-North Railroad is adding trains to supplement Thanksgiving holiday service on the New Haven commuter rail line. Check for service updates at www.mta.info/mnr.
Amtrak is doing the same for its service on the New Haven-Hartford-Springfield Line (the Hartford Line) and throughout the Northeast Corridor. Check for Amtrak service updates at www.amtrak.com/schedules.
Thanksgiving is the busiest travel season of the year.
The Connecticut Department of Transportation, City of New Haven and Greater New Haven Transit District today announced the completion of the Move New Haven bus study. Move New Haven is a comprehensive review of CTtransit New Haven bus service, the second busiest bus transit system in Connecticut.
The study team will convene with industry experts at a peer review workshop on Thursday, November 21. Representatives from BaltimoreLink MD (Maryland DOT), Central Ohio Transit Authority OH (COTA), Richmond VA (GRTC) and Rhode Island Public Transit Authority (RIPTA) are expected to participate.
The goal of the peer review workshop is to hear feedback on the Move New Haven plan and to learn more about best practices from other transit systems. The peer review workshop will be facilitated by David Carol, Chief Operations Officer of the American Public Transportation Association (APTA).
CTDOT Commissioner Giulietti remarked, "Move New Haven creates a positive new vision for transit in New Haven. The vision calls for new on-street bus rapid transit services in our busiest bus corridors. It does not rely on new busways. This is a pragmatic and affordable path forward for CTtransit."
"I'm grateful to my staff, state and federal transportation officials, and those from other regional transit districts for lending time, talent, and expertise to this redesign effort in greater New Haven," Mayor Toni N. Harp said. "I hope your comprehensive approach yields an improved CT Transit System more responsive to riders who need it, respectful of drivers who make it operational, and practical in terms of linking employees with employers, while connecting to other regional and interstate passenger carriers."
Members of the media are invited to attend the wrap-up of the workshop at 195 Church Street, 4th Floor, New Haven led by David Carol, APTA at 3:15 p.m. followed by closing remarks from City of New Haven Mayor Toni Harp and Connecticut Department of Transportation Commissioner Joseph Giulietti.
Your coverage is welcome. Media planning on attending the event are asked to RSVP to either Judd Everhart Judd.Everhart@ct.gov or Mary Coursey mary@courseyco.com by end of day on Wednesday.
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