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[ Originally published on: Tuesday, July 14, 2009 ]
The state's efforts to move the Vermonter rail service through Greenfield and Northampton have moved into higher gear, with New England's six governors including it in their 'joint regional vision' to improve rail service with the help of federal stimulus money.
Returning the New York-to-St. Johnsbury, Vt., rail service along the Connecticut River is supported by both the state of Vermont, which pays for the service, and Pan Am Railways to repair track from Springfield north, according to Dana Roscoe, a planner with the Pioneer Valley Regional Planning Commission.
'To bring this project to fruition in a two-year timeframe would be very exciting,' said Roscoe, whose planning agency began work on a feasibility study on the project in March 2008.
By having the train on a more direct north-south route would shave 50 minutes off the trip from the jog that was devised more than 20 years ago through Palmer and northward through Amherst and Millers Falls because of poor track conditions on the Connecticut River Line.
The rail improvement plan approved Monday would attract twice as many riders by 2030 with more stops and faster service. It integrates transportation projects across the region so the states can compete for some $8 billion in the federal stimulus funding that was set aside by President Barack Obama and Congress for high-speed and intercity rail projects.
