The Connecticut Department of Transportation (CTDOT) has hired three consulting firms to help plan the future of the New Haven Line and the entire statewide rail system.
The three firms ”“ Los Angeles-headquartered AECOM and the New York City-headquartered Parsons Brinckerhoff and STV ”“ will be responsible for developing a strategy to improve capacity, frequency, and speed of rail service on the New Haven Line via the so-called “2+2 Plan” that runs local trains on two outer tracks and express trains on the two inner tracks.
The firms will also formulate service and infrastructure investment strategies related to the rail system while evaluating a potential optimal strategy for creating direct service to New York Penn Station. Funding for this project comes from an initial allocation of $3 million by the State Bond Commission from Gov. Dannel P. Malloy”™s “Let”™s Go CT” ramp-up program.
“With the opening of the Hartford Line next year, we have an opportunity to take a fresh look at rail service across the state, to rethink schedules, fares, branding and other operational details,” said Richard Andreski, CTDOT bureau chief of public transportation. “It will soon be possible to travel with ease between Hartford and the state’s major cities along the coast.”
