The Fitchburg Subdivision is a railroad line owned by CSX Transportation in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. The line runs from Fitchburg southeast to Framingham Center [1] along a former New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad line. Its south end is at the Boston Subdivision; the MBTA's Framingham Secondary continues southeast from Framingham. [2] [3]
The part from Fitchburg south to Pratt Junction (in Sterling) opened in 1850 as part of the Fitchburg and Worcester Railroad. [4] : 238 At the other end, the Boston and Worcester Railroad opened a branch from Framingham northwest to Framingham Center in 1849. [4] : 348 The Agricultural Branch Railroad opened in 1855 from Framingham Center west to Northborough and in 1866 to Pratts Junction. [5] The entire line became part of the NYNH&H and Conrail through leases, mergers, and takeovers, and was assigned to CSX in the 1999 breakup of Conrail.
The MBTA Commuter Rail system serves as the commuter rail arm of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority's (MBTA's) transportation coverage of Greater Boston in the United States. Trains run over 394 mi (634 km) of track to 135 stations. It is operated under contract by Keolis, which took over operations on July 1, 2014, from the Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad Company (MBCR).
The Boston and Albany Railroad was a railroad connecting Boston, Massachusetts to Albany, New York, later becoming part of the New York Central Railroad system, Conrail, and CSX Transportation. The mainline is currently used by CSX for freight as the Berkshire Subdivision and Boston Subdivision. Passenger service is provided on the line by Amtrak, as part of their Lake Shore Limited service, and by the MBTA Commuter Rail system, which owns the section east of Worcester and operates it as its Framingham/Worcester Line.
The Grand Junction Railroad is an 8.55-mile (13.76 km) long railroad in the Boston, Massachusetts, area, connecting the railroads heading west and north from Boston. The line is notable for its railroad bridge over the Charles River that passes under the Boston University Bridge between Boston and Cambridge, Massachusetts.
The Framingham/Worcester Line of the MBTA Commuter Rail system runs west from Boston, Massachusetts to Worcester, Massachusetts through the MetroWest region, serving 17 station stops in Boston, Newton, Wellesley, Natick, Framingham, Ashland, Southborough, Westborough, Grafton, and Worcester. It is the third longest and third busiest line in the MBTA Commuter Rail system. Service on the line is a mix of local and express trains serving Worcester plus short-turn Framingham locals.
The Trenton Subdivision is a railroad line owned by CSX Transportation in the U.S. states of Pennsylvania and New Jersey. The line runs from CP NICE in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, northeast to Port Reading Junction in Manville, New Jersey. The line was formerly part of the Reading Company system.
The Fall River Secondary is a freight railroad line in the U.S. state of Massachusetts, owned by the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, with freight operations handled by the Massachusetts Coastal Railroad; it was formerly owned and operated by CSX Transportation. The line runs from the New Bedford Subdivision at Myricks south to Fall River along a former New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad line. At its south end, at the Rhode Island state line in Fall River, it becomes a line of the Providence and Worcester Railroad.
The New Bedford Main Line, also known as the New Bedford Subdivision, is a freight railroad line in the U.S. state of Massachusetts owned by the Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority, with freight operations handled by the Massachusetts Coastal Railroad. The line runs from Cotley Junction where it meets the Middleboro Secondary near Weir Village south to New Bedford along a former New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad line. The Fall River Secondary branches off at Myricks Junction.
The Middleboro Secondary is a railroad line owned by MassDOT in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. The line runs from Attleboro to Middleborough via Taunton.
The Framingham Secondary is a railroad line in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. The line runs from Mansfield northwest to Framingham along a former New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad line. Its south end is at Amtrak's Northeast Corridor, over which CSX has trackage rights to reach the Middleboro Subdivision at Attleboro and the Boston Subdivision in Boston. Its north end is at the Framingham/Worcester Line; the Fitchburg Subdivision continues northwest from Framingham.
The Boston Subdivision is a railroad line in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. The line runs from Back Bay Station in Boston west to Wilbraham, just east of Springfield. along a former New York Central Railroad line. The line connects with the Northeast Corridor its east end and continues as the Berkshire Subdivision at its west end. Along the way, the line junctions with the Framingham Subdivision and Fitchburg Subdivision at Framingham.
The Berkshire Subdivision is a railroad line owned by CSX Transportation in the U.S. states of Massachusetts and New York. The line runs from near Springfield, Massachusetts west to Schodack, New York, along a former New York Central Railroad line. Its east end is in Wilbraham, east of Springfield, at the west end of the Boston Subdivision. Its west end is just east of the Alfred H. Smith Memorial Bridge, at a junction with the Castleton Subdivision and Schodack Subdivision. Along the way, the line junctions Amtrak's Post Road Branch in Schodack.
The Selkirk Subdivision is a railroad line owned by CSX Transportation in the U.S. state of New York. The line runs from Selkirk northwest to Amsterdam along a former New York Central Railroad line. At its southeast end, at Selkirk Yard, the Selkirk Subdivision becomes the Castleton Subdivision. Its northwest end is at the east end of the Mohawk Subdivision, and it junctions the Carman Subdivision at Rotterdam and the Hudson Subdivision at Hoffmans.
The Fitchburg Intermodal Transportation Center is a regional rail and bus station located in downtown Fitchburg, Massachusetts. It is a stop on the MBTA Commuter Rail Fitchburg Line and a hub for Montachusett Regional Transit Authority local and intercity bus routes.
Framingham station is a historic Boston and Albany Railroad station located in downtown Framingham, Massachusetts. Designed by noted American architect H. H. Richardson, it was one of the last of the railroad stations he designed in the northeastern United States to be built. The station, built in 1884–85, served as a major stop on the B&A Main Line as well as a hub for branch lines to Milford, Mansfield, Fitchburg, and Lowell. After years of deterioration, the station was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1975 as the Framingham Railroad Station, and restored a decade later.
The Boston, Clinton, Fitchburg and New Bedford Railroad was a railroad in Massachusetts. It was formed on June 1, 1876, when the Boston, Clinton and Fitchburg Railroad merged with the New Bedford Railroad. The Boston, Clinton and Fitchburg Railroad connected with the key railroad hubs of Worcester, Framingham, and Ayer, as well as several important industrial towns such as Fitchburg and Lowell, with the latter coming through a lease of the Framingham and Lowell Railroad. The New Bedford Railroad linked Framingham with New Bedford, which was a key deep-water port.
Medfield Junction is a railway junction and former train station located in northwest Medfield, Massachusetts. It is the junction of the Framingham Secondary and the former Millis Branch. The station was open from November 1861 until April 1967.
The Fitchburg and Worcester Railroad was a railroad in Massachusetts. It was incorporated in 1840 to provide a rail connection between Fitchburg and Worcester. Service began on February 11, 1850, running 18 miles from Fitchburg through Leominster and Sterling to Sterling Junction, where it connected with the Worcester and Nashua Railroad.
The Agricultural Branch Railroad was a railroad in Massachusetts. It was incorporated by the Legislature of Massachusetts on April 26, 1847, to provide a rail connection between Framingham and Northborough through the town of Southborough and a small portion of the city of Marlborough. Service began on December 1, 1855.
The New Bedford Railroad was a railroad in Massachusetts. It was incorporated on July 1, 1873, as a merger between the New Bedford and Taunton Railroad, the Taunton Branch Railroad, and the Middleborough and Taunton Railroad. The main line ran from a junction with the Boston and Providence Railroad in Mansfield through the towns of Norton, Taunton, Berkley, Lakeville, and Freetown to the deep-water whaling port of New Bedford. The railroad also had several branches, including the former Middleborough and Taunton Railroad, which ran from Weir Village, Taunton into Middleborough through Raynham, and a shortcut to Providence via the Boston and Providence Railroad which ran from Taunton to Attleborough through Norton.
The Framingham and Lowell Railroad was a railroad in Middlesex County, Massachusetts. It was incorporated in 1870 to provide a rail connection between the growing railroad hub of Framingham and the important mill city of Lowell, passing through the towns of Sudbury, Concord, Acton, Carlisle, Westford and Chelmsford. The 26.1 mile line opened on October 1, 1871.