Formation | 1989 |
---|---|
Purpose | rail passenger transportation advocacy |
Headquarters | Portland, Maine |
Region | New England, United States |
Website | trainridersne |
Trainriders Northeast is a non-profit citizens' organization group based out of Portland, Maine, in the United States. It was established in 1989 to advocate for the extension of passenger rail service from Boston to Portland and points north. Today Trainriders Northeast may be most well known for their role in bringing passenger service back to Portland, with the Amtrak Downeaster .
The organization was established not only to promote the extension of rail service, but to educate the public on the pros of rail. They also support comprehensive transportation planning, or creating long-term regional transportation plans. [1]
Trainriders Northeast adopted five goals when they were organized in 1989, the first being the return of passenger rail service to Maine from Boston on the former Pine Tree route of the Boston & Maine and the Maine Central.
One of the original goals was to return passenger rail service from Portland to Brunswick, where Amtrak service could connect with the Maine Eastern Railroad. This was accomplished with a $35 million federal grant. The Maine Eastern Railroad operates a scenic train with service from Brunswick to Rockland, via Bath and Wiscasset. Pan Am Railways completed the work on time and on budget. The Northern New England Passenger Rail Authority initiated passenger rail service to Freeport and Brunswick in December 2012. [2] [3]
Trainriders Northeast also hope to return passenger rail service to Bangor, via Lewiston – Waterville, and via Brunswick – Augusta, along with returning passenger rail service to other areas of Maine, New Hampshire, and Vermont. [1]
The organization also states that it is in their goals to improve and upgrade the current rail system through northern New England. [1]
Trainriders Northeast sponsors a "Host" program on certain trains. Hosts are volunteers that provide passengers with information on destinations, attractions, and transfers. [4] [5]
The Boston and Maine Railroad was a U.S. Class I railroad in northern New England. Originally chartered in 1835, it became part of what was the Pan Am Railways network in 1983.
North Station is a commuter rail and intercity rail terminal station in Boston, Massachusetts. It is served by four MBTA Commuter Rail lines – the Fitchburg Line, Haverhill Line, Lowell Line, and Newburyport/Rockport Line – and the Amtrak Downeaster intercity service. The concourse is located under the TD Garden arena, with the platforms extending north towards drawbridges over the Charles River. The eponymous subway station, served by the Green Line and Orange Line, is connected to the concourse with an underground passageway.
The Flying Yankee was a diesel-electric streamliner built in 1935 for the Maine Central Railroad and the Boston and Maine Railroad by Budd Company and with mechanical and electrical equipment from Electro-Motive Corporation. It was also the name of a passenger train, the third streamliner train in North America. That train ceased passenger service in 1957 and is stored at the Hobo Railroad in New Hampshire. It is owned by the state of New Hampshire, which in 2023 said it wants to sell the train.
The Downeaster is a 145-mile (233 km) passenger train service operated by Amtrak and managed by the Northern New England Passenger Rail Authority (NNEPRA), an agency of the state of Maine. Named for the Down East region of Maine, the train operates five daily round trips between North Station in Boston, Massachusetts, and Brunswick, Maine, with ten intermediate stops.
The Boston and Lowell Railroad was a railroad that operated in Massachusetts in the United States. It was one of the first railroads in North America and the first major one in the state. The line later operated as part of the Boston and Maine Railroad's Southern Division.
The North–South Rail Link (NSRL) was a proposed rail tunnel, or pair of tunnels, that would connect North Station and South Station in downtown Boston, Massachusetts, linking rail networks that serve the city's northern suburbs, New Hampshire, and Maine with the rest of the country. The project would build new underground stations near the existing stations, connect them with about 1.5 miles (2.4 km) of tunnels, and add other tunnels to link up with existing surface tracks.
The Maine Central Railroad was a U. S. class 1 railroad in central and southern Maine. It was chartered in 1856 and began operations in 1862. By 1884, Maine Central was the longest railroad in New England. Maine Central had expanded to 1,358 miles (2,185 km) when the United States Railroad Administration assumed control in 1917. The main line extended from South Portland, Maine, east to the Canada–United States border with New Brunswick, and a Mountain Division extended west from Portland to St. Johnsbury, Vermont, and north into Quebec. The main line was double track from South Portland to Royal Junction, where it split into a "lower road" through Brunswick and Augusta and a "back road" through Lewiston, which converged at Waterville into single track to Bangor and points east. Branch lines served the industrial center of Rumford, a resort hotel on Moosehead Lake and coastal communities from Bath to Eastport.
Durham–University of New Hampshire station, also known as Durham–UNH station or simply Durham station, is a passenger rail station in Durham, New Hampshire, served by Amtrak's Downeaster line. The historic depot, which now houses the UNH Dairy Bar, is situated just west of downtown Durham on the campus of the University of New Hampshire (UNH). The station is owned by the university, but an adjacent parking area is managed by the town of Durham. On average, about 161 rail passengers board or detrain daily at Durham, making it the third-busiest Amtrak stop in New Hampshire.
The railroad history of Portland, Maine, began in 1842 with the arrival of the Portland, Saco & Portsmouth Railway (PS&P). Most of the rail activity in Portland revolved around agricultural goods bound for export and import freight from Europe. Yet Maine's largest city also enjoyed 125 years of continuous passenger rail service, from 1842 until 1967, and Amtrak began serving the city in 2001. For most of Portland's history, passenger train schedules were designed with intercity travel rather than daily commuting in mind; passenger activities were mostly confined to intercity travel from Portland to Boston, Montreal, Nova Scotia, and points west.
Haverhill station is an intercity and regional rail station located in downtown Haverhill, Massachusetts, United States. It is served by Amtrak's Downeaster service and the MBTA Commuter Rail Haverhill/Reading Line; it is the northern terminus of MBTA service on the line. Haverhill is one of two major hubs for MVRTA local bus service; the Washington Square Transit Center is located 1⁄5 mile (0.32 km) east of the rail station.
Dover Transportation Center is an Amtrak train station in Dover, New Hampshire, United States. The station is served by five daily Downeaster round trips. An average of 150 passengers board or alight at Dover daily, making it the second-busiest stop in New Hampshire.
Wells Regional Transportation Center is an Amtrak train station in Wells, Maine. The station sits next to the Pan Am Railways mainline, formerly the Western Route mainline of the Boston and Maine Railroad.
Portland Transportation Center is a bus and train station in Portland, Maine, United States, served and run primarily by Concord Coach Lines and Amtrak Downeaster passenger trains. It is also served by Megabus, as well as the Greater Portland Metro route 1 and BREEZ bus services. The station is open from 4:30 AM to 12:15 AM and from 2:45 AM to 3:15 AM.
Maine Eastern Railroad was a railroad that operated in coastal Maine, between Brunswick and Rockland, on the former Maine Central Rockland Branch rail line. Maine Eastern passenger trains connected with the Amtrak Downeaster passenger train and Pan Am Railways at Brunswick Maine Street Station. The state of Maine did not renew the operating contract with MERR, which effectively ended operations at the end of 2015.
Freeport station is a passenger rail station in Freeport, Maine, which is located on Amtrak's Downeaster line. The Downeaster operates from North Station in Boston to Brunswick Maine Street Station in Brunswick, Maine, via the Portland Transportation Center in Portland, Maine. Freeport was part of a $38.3 million project to rehabilitate 30 miles (48 km) of track between Portland and Brunswick. Most of the money came from the federal government with an additional $500,000 of state money spent on platforms on Freeport and Brunswick. The first official service to the station was on November 1, 2012.
Brunswick Maine Street Station, or Brunswick station, is a multi-modal, multi-use real estate development in Brunswick, Maine. Located on Maine Street, it consists of commercial offices, service centers, healthcare, retail, restaurants, theater and residential space. Brunswick Station is also a transportation hub for city buses, taxis, and passenger trains.
Rockland station is a railway station located at Union and Pleasant Streets in Rockland, Maine. It is the eastern terminus of the Rockland Branch, a state-owned track connecting Rockland and Brunswick. The historic station building was built in 1917 by the Maine Central Railroad, and was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1978 as Rockland Railroad Station. It presently houses a restaurant, and served for a time as Rockland's city hall. The line is presently inactive, having most recently had seasonal passenger service from 2004 to 2015 operated by the now-defunct Maine Eastern Railroad. The line would then be leased to the Central Maine and Quebec Railway (CMQ) from 2015 to 2020, then to Canadian Pacific Railway following its purchase of CMQ in 2020. CMQ originally planned to reintroduce service on the line, but not with excursions.
Transportation in New England encompasses the region's rail and highway networks, seaports, and airports. New England has one of the United States' oldest intercity transportation systems, which remain important to the region's economy. It is also home to the continent's first subway system. The densely populated area has many cities and towns connected by rail and road, and the larger cities each have commercial airports with daily flights to destinations outside of the region.
Union Station was a train station in the Libbytown neighborhood of Portland, Maine, which operated from 1888 to 1960. It was demolished in 1961 and is now the site of a strip mall.
Kennebunk station is a former train station located off Depot Street in Kennebunk, Maine. The station opened in 1873 and closed in 1965; it is now occupied by a private business. Planning began in 2014 to add Kennebunk as a stop on the Amtrak Downeaster route, but the town cancelled the project in 2018.