The Central Corridor Rail Line is a proposed passenger service route between New London

New London, Connecticut

New London is a seaport city and a port of entry on the northeast coast of the United States.It is located at the mouth of the Thames River in New London County, southeastern Connecticut....

, Connecticut, and Brattleboro, Vermont. A primary purpose of the proposed service is to provide a rail link between 13 colleges and universities (including the state flagship schools UConn, UMass Amherst, and UVM) as part of the Knowledge Corridor

Knowledge Corridor

The Knowledge Corridor is term for the area comprising north-central Connecticut and the south-central Connecticut River Valley in Western Massachusetts...

. Preparing the line for passenger service would require refurbishing the New England Central Railroad

New England Central Railroad

The New England Central Railroad is a subsidiary of RailAmerica that began operations in 1995. It runs from New London, Connecticut, to Alburgh, Vermont, a distance of .-History:...

 tracks, which also carry freight to New London's deepwater port. The northernmost section, in Vermont, is currently being upgraded to continuously welded rail via a $50 million ARRA

Arra

Arra is a census town in Puruliya district in the state of West Bengal, India.-Demographics: India census, Arra had a population of 19,911. Males constitute 52% of the population and females 48%. Arra has an average literacy rate of 66%, higher than the national average of 59.5%; with 59% of the...

 grant; New England Central estimates that similar upgrades (which include upgrading the track to standard 286,000 pound car loads) from the Massachusetts / Vermont border to New London would cost $18 million.

Rolling stock

Equipment is proposed to be refurbished 1950s Budd Rail Diesel Cars

Budd Rail Diesel Car

The Budd Rail Diesel Car, RDC or Buddliner is a self-propelled diesel multiple unit railcar. In the period 1949–62, 398 RDCs were built by the Budd Company of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States...

, which are less expensive to operate than conventional locomotive-and-carriage trains on lower-density routes like the Central Corridor. The refurbished RDCs would be capable of operating at speeds up to 80 miles per hour - the FRA

Federal Railroad Administration

The Federal Railroad Administration is an agency in the United States Department of Transportation. The agency was created by the Department of Transportation Act of 1966...

 limit on track speed on the corridor.

Relation to Vermonter

Currently, Amtrak's Vermonter runs over the NECR tracks from Palmer to Brattleboro, including the station stop at Amherst

Amherst (Amtrak station)

Amherst is an Amtrak station in Amherst, Massachusetts on the Vermonter. It is located at 13 Railroad Street, off Main Street. The station was originally built in 1853 by the Central Vermont Railroad and was restored in 1992...

. However, the train is planned to be rerouted westward to Northampton and Holyoke to avoid the time-consuming backup at Palmer. The Central Corridor Rail Line would stop at Amherst, preventing the station stop (which serves UMass Amherst) from being abandoned.

From its reinstatement in 1989 until 1995, the Montrealer (the direct predecessor of the Vermonter) ran along the alignment from New London to Palmer, instead of its present route from New Haven north to Springfield and east to Palmer. This routing included a stop at Willimantic starting in 1992.

Station Listing

State	City	Station	Notes
Connecticut	New London New London, Connecticut New London is a seaport city and a port of entry on the northeast coast of the United States.It is located at the mouth of the Thames River in New London County, southeastern Connecticut....	Union Station	Connections to Amtrak Amtrak The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971, to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a portmanteau of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union... , Shore Line East Shore Line East Shore Line East is a commuter rail service operating in southern Connecticut, USA. A fully owned subsidiary of the Connecticut Department of Transportation , SLE provides service seven days a week along the Northeast Corridor from New London west to New Haven, with continuing service to Bridgeport... , SEAT Southeast Area Transit Southeast Area Transit is a provider of local bus service in eight towns and two cities in the southeastern portion of the U.S. state of Connecticut: East Lyme, Griswold, Groton , Ledyard, Montville, New London, Norwich, Stonington, and Waterford...
	Montville Montville, Connecticut Montville is a town in New London County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 18,546 at the 2000 census and 19,571 at the 2010 census....	Mohegan	Mohegan Sun Mohegan Sun Mohegan Sun, located in Uncasville, Connecticut, is the second largest casino in the United States with of gaming space. It is located on along the banks of the Thames River. It is at the heart of the scenic foothills of southeastern Connecticut, where 60 percent of the state's tourism is...  casino
	Norwich Norwich, Connecticut Regular steamship service between New York and Boston helped Norwich to prosper as a shipping center through the early part of the 20th century. During the Civil War, Norwich once again rallied and saw the growth of its textile, armaments, and specialty item manufacturing...	Norwich	Connection to SEAT Southeast Area Transit Southeast Area Transit is a provider of local bus service in eight towns and two cities in the southeastern portion of the U.S. state of Connecticut: East Lyme, Griswold, Groton , Ledyard, Montville, New London, Norwich, Stonington, and Waterford...  at Norwich Transportation Center
	Willimantic Willimantic, Connecticut Willimantic is a census-designated place and former city located in the town of Windham in Windham County, Connecticut, United States. The population was estimated at 15,823 at the 2000 census. It is home to Eastern Connecticut State University, as well as the Windham Textile and History Museum....	Willimantic	Former Vermonter Vermonter Amtrak's Vermonter is a 611-mile passenger train service between St. Albans , New York City and Washington, D.C. One trip runs in each direction per day....  stop
	Mansfield Mansfield, Connecticut Mansfield is a town in Tolland County, Connecticut, United States. The population was 20,720 at the 2000 census.Mansfield was incorporated in October 1702 from the Town of Windham, in Hartford County. When Windham County was formed on 12 May 1726, Mansfield then became part of that county...	Storrs / Mansfield
	Stafford Stafford, Connecticut Stafford is a town in Tolland County, Connecticut, United States, settled in 1719. The population was 11,307 at the 2000 census.-History:The Colonial Town of Stafford began as a rural agricultural community...	Stafford Springs
Massachusetts	Palmer Palmer, Massachusetts The Town of Palmer is a city in Hampden County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 12,140 as of the 2000 census. It is part of the Springfield, Massachusetts Metropolitan Statistical Area...	Palmer
	Amherst Amherst, Massachusetts Amherst is a town in Hampshire County, Massachusetts, United States in the Connecticut River valley. As of the 2010 census, the population was 37,819, making it the largest community in Hampshire County . The town is home to Amherst College, Hampshire College, and the University of Massachusetts...	Amherst Amherst (Amtrak station) Amherst is an Amtrak station in Amherst, Massachusetts on the Vermonter. It is located at 13 Railroad Street, off Main Street. The station was originally built in 1853 by the Central Vermont Railroad and was restored in 1992...	Current Vermonter Vermonter Amtrak's Vermonter is a 611-mile passenger train service between St. Albans , New York City and Washington, D.C. One trip runs in each direction per day....  stop
	Millers Falls Millers Falls, Massachusetts Millers Falls is a census-designated place in the town of Montague in Franklin County, Massachusetts, United States. The population was 1,072 at the 2000 census...	Millers Falls
Vermont	Brattleboro Brattleboro, Vermont Brattleboro, originally Brattleborough, is a town in Windham County, Vermont, United States, located in the southeast corner of the state, along the state line with New Hampshire. The population was 12,046 at the 2010 census...	Brattleboro Brattleboro (Amtrak station) Brattleboro is a train station in Brattleboro, Vermont served by Amtrak, the national railroad passenger system. It is the first station along the Vermonter line within the state of Vermont.-Notable Places Nearby:...	Vermonter Vermonter Amtrak's Vermonter is a 611-mile passenger train service between St. Albans , New York City and Washington, D.C. One trip runs in each direction per day.... stop

External Links

• Central Corridor Line (official project site)
• Documents hosted by RIARP
• Map of line using Google Maps template