Passenger service may return to Northwest Corner

NORTH CANAAN — The railroad is truly a dynamic force. Whether it carries people or goods, it drives the atmosphere and economy of an area. There has long been a cry to bring passenger service to and from New York City back to the Northwest Corner. As the economy struggles to bounce back and a local depot nears a dramatic resurrection, the timing of a plan to do just that could not be better.

Canaan Union Station, once at a junction of two lines, has remained in continuous operation for more than 130 years. It has retained its “operating� designation only because Housatonic Railroad Company (HRRC) freight trains rumble past it. For many years it was home to businesses, but it has been unused since a fire in 2001 destroyed it. The last time the waiting room saw passengers was 1991, when weekend scenic rides to Cornwall and back were offered. Commuter service has not been available since 1971. Since then, Metro North has established service as far north as Wassaic, N.Y.

It has all come sort of full circle with a recent ridership survey that showed interest in a passenger train would be more for weekenders and tourists. But no matter why people want to ride, the results are positive enough: an estimated two million one-way trips per year could be expected, enough to give the green light to a plan by HRRC to bring back daily passenger service.

“It’s safe to say within five years,� said Colin Pease, vice president for special projects at HRRC.

Five years might seem like a long time to wait for the endeavor, dubbed for now as the Berkshire Line Project, but there is an incredible amount of work to do, including arranging financing, upgrading tracks, re-establishing a string of depots, and acquiring the trains, which would have to operate on both diesel and electricity.

The HRRC system includes rail lines from Pittsfield to Danbury, from Danbury east to Derby and from Danbury west to Beacon, N.Y. All tie freight service into the national CSX train system.

There are several options HRRC will pursue in determining its passenger route. Passengers might switch to Metro North trains in Danbury. Pease said HRRC might also bring  trains into Brewster, which is 15 minutes faster. Housatonic trains may also go all the way into Grand Central Station.

“It’s not a problem for the train, but our crew would not be allowed to take the train into New York,� Pease said. “All that needs to happen is there would be a brief stop while our crew got off and a Metro North crew got on to finish the trip.�

The big question for many here is where the stops will be. There will need to be a balance struck between convenience — everyone wants the train to stop in their town — and making good time. No one will want the train to stop every 10 minutes.

And there is the even bigger question of precisely where stations will be. Most of the old depots are either gone, privately owned or no longer suitable when it comes to needs such as nearby parking.

“We have met with the first selectmen from every town along the route,� Pease said. “We explained we want their input and want them to share in the decisions that need to be made. In some cases, we may be able to use an existing depot. Some towns already have ideas for where new stations could be built.

“Most commuter stations now are not much more than a high-level platform and a parking lot. We envision more than that. There are opportunities for new businesses, such as coffee shops and newsstands. We are contacting car rental agencies. Zipcars [a membership-based car sharing company] are also an option.�

One thing is certain: The goal is to be unique. The schedule will include multiple daily trains. The coaches will likely be a combination of new cars and the 14 cars that HRRC already owns.

“They are older cars, but not antiques,� Pease said. “They are certainly not your typical commuter cars. We have some double-decker gallery cars that were used in Chicago that we can upgrade and make more comfortable. There are all sorts of options we can include, such as Wi-Fi, that are suitable for both commuters and tourists.�

Flexibility will be the watchword. Some trains might have club cars that serve food. The survey showed many people wanting to bring bicycles on board, as transportation to and from the station and to use on the area’s scenic biking trails and roads.

Coaches could be adaptable — basically by removing some of the seats — to accommodate the cyclists. Those sorts of amenities would presumably get more use on the weekends.

The need for dual-powered locomotives is driven by the lack of electrical service on the rail lines here, the ban on diesel engines in Grand Central Station and other track variations.

There is actually an easy answer here: the EMD FL9, a locomotive capable of running on diesel or with the help of overhead power lines or a third rail.

Sixty FL9s were built in the late 1950s by General Motors’ Electro-Motive Division for the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad.

“The state has declared six of them as surplus,� Pease said. “They can be rehabilitated and put back in service, which would be a big savings for us. We’ve asked the state to reserve them for us.�

The survey, by Market Street Research Inc. in Northampton, Mass., included online responses from a sample group of 2,567 people in New York City, northwestern Connecticut and Berkshire County, Mass. It showed about one in four commuters who travel regularly between those areas are highly interested in having an alternative to traveling by car.

The remainder said they are moderately interested. The majority are second-home owners.

There is potential for an economic boost, from an increase in tourism to low-key business development. Pease said the survey profiled the large number of people who telecommute. Those are often people in a position of power in their companies.

“Perhaps, once they have the train to easily move groups of people, they may build satellite offices here,� Pease said.

Financing will present the first challenge. Pease said it will require a combination of public and private funding. There are attractive long-term government loan programs available specifically for railroads.

Private financing is an option, but will be complicated as Connecticut owns 37 miles of and many crossings on the Berkshire Line.

Once that hurdle is cleared, HRRC can begin ordering materials for the track upgrade. Those materials are expected to take months to be delivered. At this point, work on the tracks, stations and all the other details is expected to take three years to complete.

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