East-west rail proposal gains steam from Biden infrastructure plan

MASSLIVE (November 28, 2021)— Any east-west passenger rail connection from Boston through Worcester to Springfield and beyond should be operated by Amtrak, the state Department of Transportation said in a report that came out soon after Amtrak received $66 billion in the new federal infrastructure law.

The report supported the quasi-public passenger rail service over a potential private operator or the Boston area’s MBTA.

The state didn’t publicize its report, though. Instead, Ben Heckscher, co-founder of the advocacy group Trains in The Valley, said his group sent out out a news release for what he sees as a significant development.

“It looks like they are taking steps forward to see what it would take to actually make this happen,” Heckscher said. “Which is a different tone than we heard maybe a year ago.”

That $1.2 trillion federal infrastructure bill, called the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, includes $2.5 billion in funding for mass transit in the Bay State, along with the opportunity to compete for $16 billion in “major projects” transportation funding.

“The states are going to be flush with revenue now for a decade when it comes to transportation,” said U.S. Rep. Richard E. Neal, D-Springfield, chairman of the House Committee on Ways and Means, which wrote much of the infrastructure bill and its companion Build Back Better bill now before the Senate.

“I’m determined that all of this money is not going to go to the MBTA, and everybody knows this, including the MBTA,” Neal said.

Everybody includes Gov. Charlie Baker, who many observers say is lukewarm at best toward east-west rail. When asked about its prospects, Baker typically cites stumbling blocks and cautiously seeks guarantees of ridership.

But Neal said Baker is open-minded. “The governor and I continue to have these conversations,” he said.

“The Baker-Polito Administration continues to consider options for the East-West rail, including commissioning the East-West Passenger Rail Study which entailed public comment, informational meetings, online engagement and outreach,” MassDOT spokeswoman Judith Riley said this month. “The Administration will continue to review the federal infrastructure bill and its impact on improving transportation options in Massachusetts.”

Neal expects Amtrak president Stephen J. Gardner to visit Springfield soon, and described the east-west rail project as a “unifying theme” for a Massachusetts congressional delegation he leads as the state’s senior member of the U.S. House of Representatives. U.S. Reps. Stephen Lynch, D-South Boston, Seth Moulton, D-Salem, and Jake Auchincloss, D-Newtown, are members of the Transportation and Infrastructure Committee.

There will be other high-profile projects in Massachusetts covered by the infrastructure bill. Neal said he supports using the new law for upgrading the two Cape Cod bridges. He also pointed to the overburdened highway interchange in Sturbridge, where the Massachusetts Turnpike and Interstate 84 meet.