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Riding the Rails (and Buses)
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Business New Haven
2/4/2002
By:
Linda Mele
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According to the Connecticut Transit Authority, the state's bus and rail transportation system includes two commuter rail lines, three branch lines, eight CTTransit bus divisions and 14 active transit districts, all of which provide some level of transportation and/or commuting services.
Ten years ago, Milford Alderman Jack Fowler also had to make a decision about how to get to work in New York. As a place to live, Milford was certainly more affordable than Greenwich and other southern Fairfield County towns, Fowler says.
“Once you experience the rush-hour commute to New York City or other towns along the way on I-95 or the Merritt Parkway, you'll never want to do it again,” he explains. “Over the years, I've become somewhat of an expert on commuting and I'd take the train before driving even if it cost the same and the time required to make the trip was the same.
When he worked in Washington, D.C. and commuted from Fredericksburg, Va., Fowler also rode the rails. Fowler says the trip from Milford to New York takes about 90 minutes; he fills that time by working or reading. “I've read hundreds of books courtesy of Metro-North,” Fowler says with a laugh.
According to Amtrak, the company owns 730 route miles (about three percent of the nationwide total) primarily between Boston and Washington, D.C., as well as in Michigan. Rail service along the New York-Washington corridor carries enough passengers to fill 121 airline flights each day. On weekdays, Amtrak operates up to 265 trains, excluding commuter trains.
Through its commuter services, Amtrak serves more than 54 million people per year.
While high-speed Acela rail service between Boston and Newport News, Va. is faster (135 to 150 mph compared to the 79 mph maximum of regular Amtrak trains), it's not really practical for commuters to ride it to work every day because it doesn't make the number of stops Metro-North makes. Eventually, it's expected to serve 600,000 riders and provide revenues in the neighborhood of $900,000 annually, according to state DOT officials.
The Shore Line East/Metro-North commuter train ride may also be an option for those who live east of New Haven and work in New Haven or west of the city, as it offers a variety of fare options as well as shuttle service between Union Station and the downtown business district.
DOT officials say with no traffic, weather, car or parking problems and expenses, it's a transportation bargain. Fowler, however, says that parking is a problem, at least at the Milford station. No matter how convenient the train may be, it's not convenient if you can't find a place to park in order to get on the train, he notes.
“When I started commuting in 1993 there wasn't a problem getting a year-long parking pass in Milford, but now there's a waiting list of more than 400,” Fowler says.
A “super station” in either West Haven or Orange with parking for more than 1,000 cars is in the works, but a decision has not been made yet as to which municipality would be the better choice. “We need to do something about it and do it now - not ten years from now,” Fowler says.
Those for whom it's practical to ride the bus to work can choose express bus service to New Haven from Old Saybrook, Westbrook, Clinton, Madison, Guilford, Hartford and Middletown by both CTTransit and private operators under contract to the DOT. Express bus service to Stamford and White Plains, N.Y. is also provided by CTTransit.
These bus, rail and ferry efforts are supposed to encourage a reduction in automobile travel on I-95 and the Merritt Parkway, especially if the new Pearl Harbor Memorial Bridge project takes the anticipated 12 years to complete.
State officials say that current traffic volumes for both directions of travel on any given day are estimated to be 140,000 for I-95, 50,000 for the Merritt Parkway and 10,000 vehicles per day for Route 1 in Connecticut.
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