MBTA Commuter Rail

MBTA Commuter Rail COMMUTER RAIL
MBTA Commuter Rail provides commuter service from Boston as far north as Newburyport, as far south as Warwick, and as far west as Fitchburg and Worcester. A train enters Porter on the Fitchburg Line.
Reporting mark	MBTA
Locale	Eastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island
Dates of operation	1973–present
Track gauge	4 ft 8 1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) (Standard gauge)
Length	394 miles (634 km)
Headquarters	Boston, MA, USA
Website	MBTA.com

The MBTA Commuter Rail serves as the regional rail arm of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, in the United States. It is operated under contract by the Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad Company (MBCR) a joint partnership of Veolia Transportation, Bombardier Transportation and Alternate Concepts, Inc.^[1]. The current operating contract expires in July 2013.^[2]

The commuter rail system is the fifth-busiest commuter rail in the country, after only New York, New Jersey and Chicago area systems, when measured by weekday passenger boardings. For total passenger boardings, it is sixth-busiest, slightly behind SEPTA Regional Rail in the Philadelphia area. The line's characteristic purple-trimmed coaches run as far south as Warwick, Rhode Island, and as far north as Newburyport and as far west as Worcester, both in Massachusetts. The trains have two terminal stops in Boston—South Station and North Station—both transportation hubs offering connections to Amtrak, local bus and subway lines. As of Q1 of 2011, daily weekday ridership was 129,400.^[3]

Current lines

See also: List of MBTA Commuter Rail stations

Diagram of the MBTA Commuter Rail system (2011).

The following lines have a terminus of South Station (listed from southeast to west):^[4]

• Greenbush Line
• Old Colony Line consisting of:
  • Kingston/Plymouth Line
  • Middleborough/Lakeville Line
• Fairmount Line
• Providence/Stoughton Line
• Franklin Line
• Needham Line
• Framingham/Worcester Line

The following lines have a terminus of North Station (listed from west to northeast):^[4]

• Fitchburg Line
• Lowell Line
• Haverhill Line
• Newburyport/Rockport Line

Operational history

The logo of current operator Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad Company (MBCR), which appears on train schedules and personnel uniforms

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts's involvement with the operating facets of commuter rail began in 1967 when Boston & Maine petitioned the Interstate Commerce Commission to discontinue all passenger services.^{[citation needed]} All service north of the state line was discontinued, but service in Massachusetts was preserved through a contract between the Commonwealth and the B&M, at this time still an independent railroad company.

The Boston & Maine Railroad (B&M), operator of the North Station commuter lines since the first half of the 20th Century, filed for bankruptcy protection in 1970. All B&M railroad assets inside Massachusetts Route 128 with the exception of yard tracks and freight-only branches were sold to the Commonwealth of Massachusetts in 1976.^{[citation needed]} B&M was contracted to operate the service using its existing fleet of diesel railcars.^{[citation needed]}

The New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad (NYNH&H, or simply "New Haven"), the long time owner-operator of most South Station commuter trains, filed for bankruptcy for the last time in 1961.^{[citation needed]} Just two years earlier in 1959, the New Haven had discontinued passenger service on the Old Colony division in southeastern Massachusetts. The New Haven was included in the Penn Central Transportation Company merger in 1968, which itself filed bankruptcy in 1970.^{[citation needed]} During 1973-76, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts bought almost all track assets in Southeastern Massachusetts from the Penn Central's bankruptcy trustees.^{[citation needed]}

The Worcester Line, historically part of the Boston & Albany Railroad (B&A), was merged into the New York Central System and its ownership subsequently passed to Penn Central in 1968. As part of the Massachusetts Turnpike Boston Extension's construction in the 1960s, the Worcester Line's right of way between Route 128 and Boston was sold to the Massachusetts Turnpike Authority, with the proviso that the control of the railroad remains with New York Central. Consolidated Rail Corporation (Conrail), Penn Central's successor, inherited the rail line which forms a vital freight artery between Boston's Beacon Yard and Conrail's Selkirk Yard. In September 2009, CSX Transportation and the commonwealth finalized a $100 million agreement to purchase CSX's Framingham to Worcester tracks, as well as some other track, to improve service on the Framingham/ Worcester Line.^[5] A liability issue that had held up the agreement was resolved.^[6][7]

The Northeast Rail Service Act of 1981 compelled Conrail to transfer operations of all passenger and commuter services to local transit authorities, resulting in Conrail ceasing all subsidized passenger rail services.^{[citation needed]} The B&M won the contract for the South Side Lines also.^{[citation needed]} After bankruptcy, the B&M continued to run and fulfill its contract under the protection of the federal bankruptcy court, in the hopes that a reorganization could make it profitable again.^{[citation needed]} It emerged from the court's protection when the newly formed Guilford Transportation Industries (GTI) bought it, in 1983. GTI let the contract expire in 1986.

From 1986 to 2003, Amtrak managed all of Boston's commuter rail.^[8] MBTA observers saw Amtrak as having been a reliable manager and operator, but Amtrak sometimes experienced strained relations with the MBTA. Quibbles centered on equipment failures, crewing issues about the number of conductors per train, and responsibility for late trains. Because of these issues, and Amtrak's repeated statements that the MBTA contract was unreasonable, few were surprised at Amtrak's decision not to bid again for the MBTA Commuter Rail contract at its 2003 renewal.^[2]

When the MBTA asked for tenders on the commuter rail operation contract, Amtrak did not bid.^[8] Two tenders were submitted, from Guilford Rail System and from the Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad Company (MBCR), the latter of which won, taking over the MBTA Commuter Rail operation from Amtrak in July 2003.^[9] The MBCR contract originally expired in July 2008 but had an additional five-year option; it was extended three years to July 2011^[2] and then another two to July 2013.^[10] After concerns about on-time performance, the 2011 extension increased the fine for late trains from $100 to $300.^[11]

MBCR partners Bombardier Transportation and Alternate Concepts have other ties to the MBTA. Bombardier is the manufacturer of much of the rolling stock operated by the railroad, while Alternate Concepts is majority owner of Paul Revere Transportation, which operates some bus lines under contract from the MBTA.^[12]

Service changes since MBTA takeover

Expansions

Many improvements have been made to the Boston Commuter Rail system during MBTA's period of stewardship which started circa 1973. However, the Commonwealth's support for rail operations began long before it owned the infrastructure, in the 1950s with contracted operations and subsidies to railroads providing commuter service.

• The Commonwealth of Massachusetts pioneered the concept of "Park and Ride" by providing funds to construct the Route 128 Station station on the New Haven Railroad's Providence Line, at a location where the radial line intersected with the Massachusetts Route 128, locally thought of as the Boston Beltway. Route 128 Station was established 1953 by New Haven President 'Buck' Dumaine. The initial station was simple in design, built as a parking lot located next to the tracks.^[13]

• During the 1980s reconstruction of the Southwest Corridor along MBTA's Providence/Attleboro Line, Amtrak trains between Boston and New York were diverted over the New Haven's Fairmount Branch. As part of this project, MBTA allowed Centralized Traffic Control to be installed on this branch, greatly increasing its signal capacity.^[14] Today, MBTA is in the process of constructing in-fill stations to better serve the urban neighborhood through which it passes.

• B&M's Newburyport Branch formerly operated across the bridge at Merrimack River and as far north as Portsmouth, New Hampshire on the former Eastern Railroad of Massachusetts alignment. At the time of the MBTA takeover, the daily service had been curtailed back to Ipswich, Massachusetts, and track north of that point downgraded if not abandoned entirely. In the 1990s, MBTA restored the service north to Newburyport, Massachusetts.^[14]

• As part of the Northeast Corridor Improvement Program II (NECIP II) of the 1990s, MBTA's Providence Line was electrified using Federal funds provided to Amtrak for its Acela Express project. However, the MBTA does not operate electric equipment on the Providence Line, as such equipment would be unusable on other lines.

• At one time, MBTA's service reached only as far as Framingham, a suburb just beyond Route 128 about 12 miles from Boston. However, services on other lines reached exurbs more distant from Boston than Framingham. During the 1990s, an agreement was reached to extend MBTA's service out to Worcester, Massachusetts, making the line today's MBTA Framingham/Worcester Line. During the early 2000s, trains only served Amtrak's Worcester Union Station beyond Framingham. Over time, several more in-fill stations were added in the MetroWest region. The service was successful, resulting in relative de-emphasis of Amtrak and commuter bus services operating in the same corridor.

• During the 1990s, MBTA invested heavily in the Commuter Rail system by restoring New Haven's Old Colony division abandoned in 1959. The two main Old Colony Lines were re-opened in 1997, and the Greenbush Line opened in 2007.^[14]

• Agreement with the State of Rhode Island allowed MBTA's Attleboro Line to extend to Providence, Rhode Island during the late 1990s. At first, only weekday service was provided. In the mid-2000s, a new agreement with RIDOT provided funding to allow the service to operate on weekends also. In December 2010, service was extended further south to T. F. Green Airport, in Warwick, Rhode Island. ^[15]

Contractions

During the period of MBTA control, services have also been curtailed:

• All former B&M service that extended north of the Massachusetts border were curtailed by 1967, except for a brief period of experimental service from January 28, 1980 to March 1, 1981.^[14] Since then, restoration and extension of the Lowell Line to Nashua, Manchester, and Concord, New Hampshire and the Haverhill Line to Portland, Maine have been repeatedly discussed. In 2001 Amtrak commenced operation of the Downeaster between Boston's North Station and Portland under the auspices of the Northern New England Passenger Rail Authority. The Nashua service discussion is continuing in the context of the widening of Interstate 93 in New Hampshire.

• Passenger service on the Arlington-Lexington-Bedford Line ended on January 10, 1977.^[14] The Alewife Extension of the MBTA Red Line replaced the service as far as Alewife in West Cambridge. No commuter rail service reaches the towns of Arlington, Lexington, and Bedford, Massachusetts. Today, the rail-banked line forms the Minuteman Bikeway and is a linear park in the vicinity of Davis Square, Somerville.

• The Lowell-Lawrence-Haverhill-Newburyport line had a Budd RDC-1 running on it well into the 1970s, but was discontinued when MBTA replaced the aging Budd equipment with more modern locomotive hauled trains. The route also saw one round-trip per day from Newburyport via Bradford, Andover, and Reading to Boston which was terminated in April 1976.^[14]

• The Fitchburg Line under B&M operations terminated at Ayer, Massachusetts, but was subsequently extended as far as Gardner, Massachusetts. However, the service between Gardner and Fitchburg was ended when the parallel Massachusetts Route 2 was upgraded to expressway standards, reducing travel time between these cities.

• The southern half of the Woburn Loop still operated when the MBTA took over control, joining the Lowell Line at Winchester. Half the Lowell Line services terminated at Woburn Heights (10.0 miles from Boston), while the others stopped at North Woburn (today's Anderson RTC) and continued to Lowell. Weekend service ended on September 7, 1980, and all service on the branch stopped on January 30, 1981.^[14]

• B&M operated one daily round trip to South Sudbury (19.7 miles from Boston) over the former Central Massachusetts Railroad until its discontinuation on November 26, 1971.^[14]

Equipment

Typical Commuter Rail train, consisting of one diesel locomotive and six coaches, at Anderson Regional Transportation Center.

Boston Engine Terminal, the main northside maintenance facility, located in Somerville

Bilevel coach cars at Wellesley Hills

Engine 011 shortly after its acquisition from UTA

All MBTA Commuter Rail service is provided by push-pull trains powered by diesel locomotives. The current fleet of active passenger coaches numbers 410 ranging from 1978 to 2005, with an additional 75 on order from Hyundai Rotem.^[16] There are a total of 88 active locomotives ranging from 1957 to 2009 with 86 being used for passenger service.^[17] Of those, two were surplus units purchased in 2010 from the Utah Transit Authority,^[18] while three from MARC of Baltimore, Maryland are leased from Motive Power.^[19] The MBTA has placed an order with Motive Power for the purchase of 20 new HSP46 locomotives scheduled for delivery in 2012 and 2013.^[20]

Passenger coaches are designated as either "Blind Trailer Coaches" (BTCs), which have no cab controls, or "Control Trailer Coaches" (CTCs), which have cab controls.^[17] All MBTA Kawasaki coaches are bi-level while the new Hyundai Rotem coaches will be bi-level as well.^[16][17]

Coaches^[A][17][21]

Year	Builder	Classification	Fleet ID	Seats	Restroom	Fleet Size	Notes
1978–79	Pullman	BTC-1C	200–258	114	No	57	Coaches 203 and 215 have been retired.
1987	Bombardier	BTC-1A	350–389	127	No	40	—
1987–88	MBB	BTC-3	500–532	86	Yes	33	These, and their CTC-3 counterparts, are the only rail vehicles produced by the company, which was an aerospace firm.
1987–88	MBB	CTC-3	1500–1533	96	Yes	34	—
1989–90	Bombardier	BTC-1B	600–653	122	No	54	Rebuilt 1995–96
1989–90	Bombardier	CTC-1B	1600–1652	122	No	52	Coach 1648 has been retired. Cab controllers have been deactivated in coaches 1600–1626 making them BTCs.
1990–91	Kawasaki	BTC-4	700–749	185	No	50	—
1990–91	Kawasaki	CTC-4	1700–1724	175	No	25	—
1997	Kawasaki	BTC-4A	750–766	182	No	17	—
2001	Kawasaki	BTC-4B	767–781	182	No	15	—
2005	Kawasaki	BTC-4C	900–932	178	Yes	33	—
2010	Hyundai Rotem	BTC-5			Yes	0	75 on order for delivery in 2010.[16]
Total active coach fleet:						410

Locomotives^[A][17][21]

Year	Builder	Model	Fleet ID	Horsepower	HEP[B]	Fleet Size	Notes
1957–60	EMD	GP9	902, 904	1750	No	2	Not used for passenger service
1971	EMD	GP40-1	3247	3000	No	1	Not used for passenger service
1973–75	GMD	GP40MC	1115–1139	3000	Yes	25	Rebuilt 1997
1978	EMD	F40PH	1000–1012	3000	Yes	13	Rebuilt 1989–90
1980	EMD	F40PH	1013–1017	3000	Yes	5	Rebuilt 1989–90
1987–88	EMD	F40PH-2C	1050–1075	3000	Yes	25	Rebuilt 2001–03. Locomotive 1073 damaged in a collision in 1990 and subsequently scrapped.
1991	MK	F40PHM-2C	1025–1033	3000	Yes	9	Rebuilt 2003–04
1993	MK	F40PHM-2C	1034–1036	3000	Yes	3	Rebuilt 2003–04
1995	MK	GP40WH-2	59, 61, 67	3000	Yes	3	Former MARC engines leased from MotivePower on a month-to-month basis[19]
2009	MP	MP36PH-3C	010, 011	3600	Yes	2	Purchased from Utah Transit Authority's FrontRunner.[18]
2012–13	MP	HSP46			Yes	0	20 on order for delivery in 2012 and 2013.[20]
Total active locomotive fleet:						88

• A ^ As of August 2008 unless otherwise sourced.
• B ^ Head End Power (HEP) provides electricity for the lighting, heating, and air conditioning of passenger coaches.^[17]

Retired Equipment

EMD GP9 work train locomotive at South Station. This now-retired locomotive (No. 902) was transferred from the Southeastern Michigan Transportation Authority when the commuter rail operations were abandoned in Detroit. It still sports SEMTA colors

As the Commonwealth assumed the control of the Commuter Rail during the 1970s, it inherited various non-standard equipment from predecessor railroads. These included:

• Numerous Budd Rail Diesel Cars^[22], including a total of 86 from the B&M, New Haven Railroad and SEPTA.
• The RDC fleet was de-powered in the 1970s and turned into locomotive-hauled coaches by Morrison Knudsen.^[22] These became known as "Boise Budds", after the location of the MK shop where the work was done. Remaining examples of these units now serve on the Grand Canyon Railway and Hobo Railroad.
• In 1978-80, MBTA acquired 19 rebuilt EMD F-units.^[22] EMD GP-9s were also operated in Boston suburban service. One of the EMD GP9's is still retained as a work engine (MBTA #904),one of the six GP-9s received from SEMTA in 1988.
• Ex-GO Transit stainless steel coaches were operated as an interim solution pending delivery of the CTC-1/BTC-1 order.

Amenities

• Free wifi is provided on all trains. The program started with a $262,000 pilot on the Worcester Line in January 2008.^[23]

Fare policy

Commuter Rail tickets in the form of CharlieTickets purchased at fare vending machines and ticket booths (left) and paper tickets purchased on-board (right).

The MBTA Commuter Rail uses a fare zone policy whereby origin and destination stations are not individually priced, but assigned a zone based on distance from Boston.^[24] There are a total of ten zones (1A, then 1 through 9) with an increasing fare to or from Boston the higher the zone number. Zone 1A fares are the least expensive and cost the same as rapid transit ($1.70), while the highest priced Zone 9 fares are $8.25 per ride.^[24] Travel between suburban zones without going to Boston is charged an "interzone" fare based on the number of zones traveled.^[24] Seniors, those with a disability, and middle and high school students with proper identification receive a 50% discounted rate; children under eleven travel free with a paying adult.^[25] Fares are collected by train conductors or the captain on-board and while fare evasion is explicitly illegal, it is not criminal.^[26][27]

Tickets may be purchased at automatic vending machines located in principal stations and at suburban stations from nearby businesses and vendors.^[28][29] Stations without ticketing machines or vendors can purchase tickets on-board.^[26] Travelers can purchase tickets as a one-way, round trip, twelve ride (no discount), or monthly pass (substantial discount over daily round-trip purchase).^[24]

Ridership

Ridership levels on the Commuter Rail have grown since the MBTA's involvement began in the late 1960s, with overall average weekday ridership growing from 29,500 in 1969 to 76,000 in 1990 and 143,700 in 2008. This was accomplished by a series of rationalizations, such as closing lightly used lines, concentrating service on heavily utilized lines, and re-opening formerly abandoned branches with high traffic potential, such as the Old Colony Lines. A general growth of transit usage in the Northeastern United States also contributed. Growing ridership in this way required substantial capital investment, which was provided by a mixture of Federal mass transit funds and Commonwealth transportation bond issues.^{[citation needed]}

Train operations

An MBTA train at Campello station inbound to South Station.

Like most commuter railroads in the Northeastern United States, MBTA is a NORAC Railroad and uses the Rulebook promulgated by that organization. Much of MBTA Commuter Rail is Rule 251 territory as the tracks are signalled for movement in one direction of travel only. During the 1990s, parts of the system were re-signalled to allow a more advanced mode of operations known as NORAC Rule 261, which allows trains to operate in either direction on both tracks where double track is available. During the morning rush hour, both tracks can be simutaneously used for inbound traffic, allowing one train to make local stops while an express train overtakes the local train.

On each train, the cab car is attached at the end closest to the downtown Boston terminal station for the particular line (either North or South Station), and the locomotive is attached at the end farthest from the terminal station. On each train serving the North Station lines, the "ADA" coach used to carry mobility-limited persons is attached right behind the locomotive, allowing level boarding at all suburban stations featuring mini-high platforms. On the other hand, on each train serving the South Station lines, the cab car also serves as the "ADA" coach. (The "ADA" coaches support compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990.)

Trainlined doors that open automatically via central control are available on some equipment, but at low level platforms the conductor in each car must manually open a trap to allow passengers to descend via stairs onto the platform.

Proposed expansions

Several extensions of and improvements to the MBTA Commuter Rail network are in debate or under way.

South Station lines

Littleton/Route 495 station in Littleton

An extension of the Stoughton Line known as South Coast Rail is set to break ground to bring service to Taunton, Fall River, and New Bedford, Massachusetts. Routes through Attleboro and Middleboro were considered for the service but rejected.^[30][31] Critics argue that building the extension does not make economic sense.^[32]

In September 2010, the MBTA completed a study to determine the feasibility of extending regular commuter rail service to Foxboro via the Franklin Line. Currently, the station is only served during special events at Gillette Stadium. The study looked at extending some Fairmount Line service to Foxboro, running shuttle trains from Foxboro to Walpole, or a combination of both. No determination has been made as to if or when this service would begin.^[33]

A Providence Line extension to Wickford Junction, in North Kingstown, Rhode Island is currently under construction with service expected to start in late 2011. ^[34] The Rhode Island Department of Transportation is also studying the feasibility of serving existing Amtrak stations in Kingston and Westerly as well as constructing new stations in Cranston, East Greenwich, and West Davisville. Federal funding has also been provided for preliminary planning of a new station in Pawtucket. ^[35]

There are also purposals to extend the Middleboro Line to Wareham and eventually to Buzzards Bay.

North Station lines

The Leverett Circle Connector Bridge passes over the North Station platforms; the Bunker Hill Bridge is behind

On October 18, 2010, MBTA announced that ground had been broken on an extension of the Fitchburg Line 4.5 miles (7.2 km) to a new West Wachusett stop beyond the current terminal at Fitchburg Station. Upgraded high level platforms at both South Acton and Littleton are also planned, as well as enhanced drop-off and parking. No longer included is cab signaling, but a second main track is planned between South Acton and Ayer Junction, which is shared with freight traffic, so that the Fitchburg to Boston trip would take only about an hour.^[36] The extension was funded by a $55.5 million Transportation Investment Generating Economic Recovery (TIGER) Grant.^[37]

There is a proposal to build a South Salem Commuter Rail station in Salem, Massachusetts, to improve access to Salem State College, as well as to extend Commuter Rail to Peabody, Massachusetts and Danvers, Massachusetts.^[38]

The former state Secretary of Transportation James Aloisi had also indicated support for commuter service from Worcester to North Station via Clinton and Ayer, presumably along the Worcester, Nashua and Rochester Railroad right of way, owned by Pan Am Railways as of 2009.^[39]

The state of New Hampshire has created the New Hampshire Rail Transit Authority and allocated money to build platforms at Nashua and Manchester.^[40]

An article in the Eagle Tribune claims that Massachusetts is negotiating to buy property which has the potential to extend the Haverhill Line to Plaistow, New Hampshire. Funding is available, and Plaistow is potentially interested, but wants to better understand the potential drawbacks of being the location of the layover station.^[41][42]

North-South Rail Link

No direct connection exists between the two downtown terminals; to travel from one station to the other, passengers must use the MBTA subway or the street. While passengers using the Providence/Stoughton, Framingham/Worcester, Franklin, and Needham lines can transfer to and from North Station at Back Bay via the Orange Line subway, and passengers using the Fitchburg Line can transfer to and from South Station at Porter via the Red Line subway. All other passengers have to change subway trains at either Park Street or Downtown Crossing stations. A North-South Rail Link has been proposed to unite the two halves of the Commuter Rail system; but, because of the high cost, Massachusetts has, as of May 2006, withdrawn its sponsorship of the proposal.

Freight service

Boston Sand and Gravel and tracks as seen from an MBTA train

On the North Side lines, as part of the original sale agreement, B&M and its successor Pan Am Railways (formerly Guilford Transportation Industries) retains 'perpetual and exclusive' trackage rights for freight service. Pan Am provides freight service on those lines.^[43]

Boston Sand and Gravel has an agreement with Pan Am to operate its shortline New Hampshire Northcoast Railroad trains from Conway, New Hampshire to just north of Boston's North Station to supply aggregates to its plant on the Boston/Somerville border.^[44] An occasional move occurs with run-through power from Norfolk Southern Railway to supply coal to a power plant in Bow, New Hampshire, over the Fitchburg Line.

On the South Side lines, CSXT retains trackage rights over much of the former New Haven territory. Limited service is also provided by the Providence & Worcester Railroad on the Providence Line, principally from Central Falls (the intersection with its main line to Worcester) through Providence towards New Haven (although some freights go as far east as Attleboro before leaving the corridor).^[45]

CSXT provides intermodal, autorack, and general merchandise over the Worcester Line, a part of CSXT's Boston Line.^[46] This part of the Commuter Rail network can host over 12 mainline freight trains per day, including descendents of Conrail's expedited intermodal Trail Van trains. Currently freight service runs east to Beacon Park Yard in Allston; however, CSX is scheduled to stop using the intermodal yard in 2013.^[47]

On its former Old Colony division, the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad (NYNH&H) essentially vacated its right of freight operations by abandoning the tracks in 1959. As MBTA rebuilt the tracks, it gained freight service rights, and those rights were franchised to Conrail (predecessor to CSX), which provided freight service on the former Old Colony division.

See also

• Big Dig (Boston, Massachusetts)
• List of United States commuter rail systems by ridership

References

1. ^ "Our partnerships". Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad Company (MBCR) Co.. 2009-02-02. http://www.mbcr.net/partnerships.html. "The MBTA Board of Directors officially approved a new three-year contract with the Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad Co. to run the commuter rail." 
2. ^ ^{a b c} "MBTA Exercises Option With MBCR For Commuter Rail Service, Launches New Customer-Focused Improvements". MBTA. 2010-01-06. http://www.mbta.com/about_the_mbta/news_events/?id=18672&month=&year=. "MBTA extends MBCR contract another 2 years.." 
3. ^ American Public Transportation Association, Commuter Rail Ridership Report, First Quarter 2011.
4. ^ ^{a b} "Commuter Rail Maps and Schedules". MBTA.com. Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. http://www.mbta.com/schedules_and_maps/rail/. Retrieved October 2, 2010. 
5. ^ Deal expected to boost commuter rail service, Boston Globe September 24, 2009
6. ^ Ranalli, Ralph (10 April 2008). "No fault? No way, CSX told". The Boston Globe. http://www.boston.com/news/local/articles/2008/04/10/no_fault_no_way_csx_told/. 
7. ^ Dayal, Priyanka (11 April 2008). "Railroad standoff continues". Worcester Telegram. http://www.telegram.com/article/20080411/NEWS/804110305/1002/. 
8. ^ ^{a b} "AMTRAK RIVAL GETS CONTRACT FOR T RAIL PRIVATE GROUP SET TO TAKE OVER JULY 1". Boston Globe - Mac Daniel. 2002-12-13. http://search.boston.com/local/Search.do?s.sm.query=Amtrak&s.author=&s.si%20simplesearchinput%20.sortBy=-articlePRINTpublicationdate&docType=&s.collections=&date=&s.startDate=2002-12-13&s.endDate=2002-12-14#4550700564500587531. "Under the $1.07 billion, five-year contract, the Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad will take over running the nation's fifth-largest commuter rail system on July 1. The MBTA's contract with Massachusetts Bay marks the end of the T's stormy relationship with Amtrak, which had run the service since 1986. Amtrak dropped out of the bidding process for the contract in July, saying the terms of the contract were too costly." 
9. ^ Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad Company.
10. ^ Commuter Rail Firm Gets Contract Extension Boston.com, accessed 16 February 2010.
11. ^ Boston Metro, 6 June 2008, p. 2.
12. ^ Paul Revere Transportation.
13. ^ "Route 128 Station". New Haven Railroad Historical and Technical Association. 1 February 2000. http://www.nhrhta.org/htdocs/images0200.htm. Retrieved 1 August 2011. 
14. ^ ^{a b c d e f g h} Belcher, Jonathan (2007-08-10). "Changes to Transit Service in the MBTA district" (PDF). http://www.transithistory.org/roster/MBTARouteHistory.pdf. Retrieved 2007-09-29. 
15. ^ "Boston to T.F. Green rail service debuts". NBC 10 News. 6 December 2010. http://www2.turnto10.com/news/2010/dec/06/7/boston-tf-green-rail-service-debuts-ar-316999. Retrieved 1 August 2011. 
16. ^ ^{a b c} Bierman, Noah (October 13, 2008). "T betting on untried firm to build fleet". The Boston Globe. http://www.boston.com/news/local/massachusetts/articles/2008/10/13/t_betting_on_untried_firm_to_build_fleet/. Retrieved October 2, 2010. 
17. ^ ^{a b c d e f} "Ridership and Service Statistics - Thirteenth Edition 2010". Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. 2010. pp. 68–77. http://www.mbta.com/uploadedfiles/documents/Bluebook%202010.pdf. Retrieved May 12, 2011. 
18. ^ ^{a b} Finucane, Martin (February 7, 2011). "MBTA unveils first new locomotive in 23 years". The Boston Globe. http://www.boston.com/news/local/breaking_news/2011/02/mbta_unveils_fi.html. Retrieved February 8, 2011. 
19. ^ ^{a b} Finucane, Martin (March 23, 2011). "Used Md. engine hailed as help for struggling commuter rail". The Boston Globe. The New York Times Company. http://www.boston.com/news/local/breaking_news/2011/03/used_md_engine.html. Retrieved March 23, 2011. 
20. ^ ^{a b} Press Release (August 31, 2010). "Wabtec's MotivePower Unit Signs Contract With MBTA For New Passenger Locomotives". Market Watch. http://www.marketwatch.com/story/wabtecs-motivepower-unit-signs-contract-with-mbta-for-new-passenger-locomotives-2010-08-31?reflink=MW_news_stmp. Retrieved October 2, 2010. 
21. ^ ^{a b} "The MBTA Vehicle Inventory Page". NETransit. October 2011. http://www.transithistory.org/roster/. Retrieved 30 October 2011. 
22. ^ ^{a b c} Middleton, William D. (November 1991). "How MBTA rebuilt ridership". Railway Age. http://findarticles.com/p/articles/mi_m1215/is_n11_v192/ai_11544541/. Retrieved 3 August 2008. 
23. ^ Boston Metro, 28 Jan 2008, p. 2; BostonNOW, 28 Jan 2008, p. 3.
24. ^ ^{a b c d} "Commuter Rail Fares & Passes". MBTA.com. Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. http://mbta.com/fares_and_passes/rail/. Retrieved October 2, 2010. 
25. ^ "Reduced Fares". MBTA.com. Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. http://mbta.com/fares_and_passes/reduced_fare_programs/. Retrieved October 2, 2010. 
26. ^ ^{a b} "MBTA Scorecard". Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. August 2010. p. 14. http://www.mbta.com/uploadedfiles/About_the_T/Score_Card/Scorecard-2010-08.pdf. Retrieved October 2, 2010. 
27. ^ "Section 101 Evasion of payment of toll or fare". Massachusetts General Laws. Commonwealth of Massachusetts. http://www.mass.gov/legis/laws/mgl/159-101.htm. Retrieved October 2, 2010. 
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38. ^ "Draft North Shore Transit Improvements Project-MIS: Executive Summary". Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority. http://www.mbta.com/uploadedFiles/Documents/North_Shore_Transit_Improvements/ExecSum.pdf/. Retrieved 3 August 2011. 
39. ^ Priyanka Dayal (28 April 2009). "MBTA warns of cuts / Transportation future hot topic". http://www.telegram.com/article/20090428/NEWS/904280486/1052. Retrieved 3 August 2011. 
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External links

• MBTA Commuter Rail
• Massachusetts Bay Commuter Railroad Company (MBCR)
• MBTA Commuter Rail profile and photos
• How MBTA rebuilt ridership - Railway Age article from Nov 1991. Contains history of MBTA Commuter Rail system.
• MBTA daily rail operations visualized (Java applet, unofficial)
• MBTA Fleet Roster