NOTE: As part of this past week's National Model Railroad Association convention
in Hartford, there were excursions on the old Central New England line from
Hartford into
Bloomfield. These days its known as the Griffin Line.

NEW LOOK AT THE GRIFFIN LINE: 8.7-Mile Ride Shows Passengers The Benefits Of
Griffin Line.
·                           
Griffin Railroad Line Train Ride
·                            Passengers On The
Griffin Line

Transportation
National Government
Windsor (Hartford, Connecticut)
Bradley International Airport
West Hartford
New Haven (New Haven, Connecticut)
Public Transportation
Economic Policy
Eddie A. Perez
Windsor Locks
Heavy Engineering
Peggy Sayers
Railway Transportation
East Granby

By DON STACOM The Hartford Courant, July 13, 2009
http://www.courant.com/community/hartford/hc-hartford-griffin-line-0713.artjul13\
,0,6069711.story

HARTFORD — - Aboard one of the first three passenger trains to Bloomfield in
the past half-century, conversation hopped from one ambitious goal to the next:
New housing and jobs in Windsor, perhaps an office park in Bloomfield, and
surely an infusion of business for downtown.

Many of the politicians, business leaders and transit advocates on board ended
their ride saying the Griffin Line would make perfect sense as a light rail link
from downtown Hartford to Bradley International Airport.

"We can get economic development, we can get people from the airport to
downtown, and we can get traffic off 91 and 75 and Day Hill Road," state Rep.
David McCluskey, D- West Hartford, enthusiastically told the crowd.

Throughout the day Friday, a Central New England Railroad excursion train
shuttled riders along the 8.7-mile stretch of freight tracks between Union
Station and the end of the line, a tobacco field just below the intersection of
routes 189 and 187 in northern Bloomfield. The first two trips were for train
enthusiasts attending a national model railroad show in Hartford; the third was
reserved for Chamber of Commerce officials, politicians and others. It was an
opportunity for railroad President A.J. Belliveau to make his case for extending
the tracks to Bradley and using them for passenger service.

But the arguments today for making the Griffin Line project are virtually
identical to the ones that dominated political debate at the Capitol in the
'90s. And the proposal back then got crushed: After years of work and millions
of dollars in studies, Windsor residents voted against it, a contingent of East
Granby homeowners complained it would ruin their town's rural character, and the
state transportation department ultimately scuttled the whole idea.

So why did Belliveau's tour attract regional planners; state Rep. Peggy Sayers,
D- Windsor Locks; Rep. Kenneth Green, D-Hartford; Windsor Town Manager Peter
Souza; Hartford Mayor Eddie Perez; Sierra Club leaders; and owners of a
half-dozen major properties along the line?

McCluskey said the answer is simple: "What happened then was 10 years ago. Today
is a different time. Look at all the new development in the Day Hill Road
section since back then. Look at gas prices, carbon emissions. A lot of things
have changed."

After the trip, Perez said he's more convinced than ever that a rail link to the
airport would help the city as well as the whole central Connecticut region.
Souza said he thinks a busway would allow more flexible service, but that either
way he's excited about the potential for commuter transit serving corporate
offices that have opened along Day Hill Road.

"Passenger rail here makes sense," said James RePass, president of the National
Corridors Initiative, a prominent rail advocacy group. "And we're not rail fans,
we're businessmen. Today rail brings businessmen and environmentalists
together."

None of the advocates was prepared to recommend a specific route for extending
the tracks from Bloomfield to Bradley's terminal, which is at least 5 miles
away. But they agreed there are several possible routes, and no insurmountable
barriers. Ronald Eddy, vice president of Bloomfield-based Griffin Land, said the
costliest obstacle would probably be building a bridge across the Farmington
River.

Central New England Railroad says that if Connecticut could acquire the
property, the company could build the extension, even including a bridge, for
$50 million. Upgrading the tracks to passenger-service quality, installing a
signal system and passing sidings, building stations and similar expenses aren't
part of that estimate.

McCluskey wants the DOT to seek stimulus funding to upgrade the tracks, which
Central New England uses to serve about a half-dozen freight customers. The
company has put more than $7 million into track upgrades, new locomotives,
replacement of 25,000 railroad ties and new grade crossings. Even supporters of
the light-rail idea acknowledge that maintaining freight service while adding
light rail wouldn't pass current Federal Rail Administration regulations,
although RePass said it's possible to seek a waiver by restricting freight
service to late night hours.

And so far, the idea isn't being welcomed at DOT headquarters. Commissioner
Joseph Marie neither attended nor sent a senior staff member in his place, and
his office — in the midst of a series of other mass transit initiatives —
made clear that he's fully focused on advancing the New Haven-Springfield rail
project.

"At this time, the Griffin Line is not a priority for investing in rail
service," DOT spokesman Kevin Nursick said. "With regard to service to Bradley,
the provision of high-quality bus service from Windsor Locks is the best option
for connections to the New Haven-Springfield rail corridor."

"Today is a different time. ... Look at gas prices, carbon emissions. A lot of
things have changed."
Copyright © 2009, The Hartford Courant
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