North-South Rail Link

The North-South Rail Link is the name for a proposed rail tunnel in Boston, Massachusetts, that would connect rail service terminating at South Station to rail service terminating at North Station.

As of 2008, there is no direct rail connection between the two rail terminals. All MBTA Commuter Rail and Amtrak lines terminate at either the northern or southern edge of historic Boston at separate stations; there is no through service. The gap splits the passenger rail system, requiring inconvenient local transfers on other modes for people traveling through the city by rail. For example, the Amtrak Downeaster line from Maine, arriving to the north, has no direct connection to Amtrak's Northeast Corridor carrying the "Acela" service heading south, or to the "Lake Shore Limited" service heading west.

Present Connections

Public transit connects North Station to South Station only indirectly. Transit directly from North Station to South Station requires using two rail lines, either the Green Line and the Red Line or the Orange Line and the Red Line. Amtrak recommends that passengers with luggage take a taxi between the stations. [http://www.amtrak.com/servlet/ContentServer?pagename=Amtrak/am2Route/Vertical_Route_Page&c=am2Route&cid=1081256321869&ssid=134]

It is possible to traverse the gap via the Orange Line from Back Bay to North Station, but not all of the southern lines pass through Back Bay; the Old Colony Lines, Fairmount Line and Greenbush Line do not.

The North-South Rail Link is intended to fill this gap.

Proposal

There are several similar proposals for linking South Station and North Station by rail. The leading proposal involves construction of two 41-foot diameter deep-bore tunnels up to 130 feet beneath the city of Boston, extending beyond the present rail yards north and south of the city. Because the tunnels would continue well south of downtown, three portals would accommodate separate connections to Back Bay Station to the west, the Old Colony Lines to the south, and the Fairmount Line running southwest. To the north, the two tunnels would cross the Charles River approximately seventy feet below its surface (bypassing an existing drawbridge), connecting to two portals separately accommodating connections to the Fitchburg Line and the other northbound rail lines. Up to four tracks are proposed. The plan would require completely new underground stations downtown. Stations are proposed roughly beneath the current North and South Stations, plus an entirely new Central Station near Aquarium Station.

The tunnels would have steep inclines. Trains entering or exiting the tunnels would climb or descend three percent grades each nearly a mile long. ["MBTA, et al., "North South Rail Link Project", Major Investment Study, vol. I, figure 2.5-7 (June 2003).] The tunnels would pass approximately twenty feet beneath the I-90 extension, and would be bored to a depth of 130 feet at Central Station and North Station. Central Station would have a shorter 800-foot platform while North Station and South Station would have 1050-foot platforms.

Pilings for a planned high-rise tower at South Station complicate a proposal for aligning the tunnels directly beneath the present South Station. Instead, the leading proposal (called the "Dorchester Avenue Alignment") would reposition tracks just to the east of South Station, and would construct an underground facility approximately 100 feet below the surface of the Fort Point Channel at the Summer Street crossing. ["MBTA, et al., "North South Rail Link Project", Major Investment Study, vol. I, figure 2.5-4 (June 2003).] Tracks at the underground South Station would have a 0.61% incline.

The new downtown Central Station would connect with the Blue Line, the only rapid transit line in Boston that does not already connect with either North or South Station. The new station also would eliminate or reduce transfers to the light rail system for many commuter rail passengers with destinations in the central part of the business district. This would relieve transit congestion in the downtown core. The project is also expected to convert tens of thousands of automobile commuters to rail riders, relieving congestion somewhat on the reconstituted but still crowded Central Artery.

Like Philadelphia’s SEPTA system after the similar Center City Commuter Connection tunnel was built and connected two commuter rail systems, some of Boston’s trains would be through-routed from one side of the system to the other. Many services would still continue to terminate at North and South Stations, on existing tracks that do not lead into the tunnels.

The DEIR/MIS assumes that about one third of Amtrak service to and from points south would be routed through the tunnel, stopping only at South Station, but with a stop north of Boston in Woburn, Massachusetts. The Downeaster service from Maine and New Hampshire was assumed to stop at North Station only, with a direct connection to more southerly service in Woburn rather than Boston. Thus, some operations would continue above ground at North Station and South Station, and all track and facility would remain in place. ["MBTA, et al., "North South Rail Link Project", Major Investment Study, vol. I, figure 2-38 (June 2003).]

The tunnels would not be equipped to handle diesel locomotives, and even if they were, the performance of the locomotives might be unsuited to negotiating the steep tunnel grades and frequent, closely spaced stops that are planned. ["MBTA, et al., "North South Rail Link Project", Major Investment Study, vol. I, 2-36 (June 2003).] Locomotives equipped for electric operation would be required; that would be a significant change for the MBTA.

tatus

As of May 2006, the Commonwealth of Massachusetts has withdrawn its sponsorship of the project due to its high capital cost (projected at several billion dollars, with wide variations depending on which option is chosen). Without matching local funds, the project is ineligible for federal funding, and is no longer listed as an approved project in state and Boston MPO capital plans.

However, the April 2007 document "JOURNEY TO 2030: Transportation Plan of the Boston Region Metropolitan Planning Organization" [http://www.bostonmpo.org/bostonmpo/resources/reports.htm] says (on page 2-10), "the MPO feels that a study of the right-of-way requirements should be conducted for preservation of that right-of-way so as to not preclude this project's going forward in the future."

As of December 2007, the Federal Railroad Administration is interested in funding this project if the Massachusetts Executive Office of Transportation is interested in sponsoring it. [http://www.car-free.com/nsrl/NSRL_CAC_Letter_to_EOT_20071218.pdf]

Alternatives

Currently the MBTA uses the Grand Junction Line for non-revenue moves between the two sides of its network. The line splits from the Framingham/Worcester Line near Boston University and the Mass Turnpike Allston/Brighton tolls, the track then crosses the Charles River into Cambridge. From there it runs through the East Cambridge neighborhood and into Somerville, where it connects to the commuter rail lines running from North Station just below the McGrath-O'Brien Highway. The line is single-tracked and slow, with a large number of at-grade crossings. Several of the crossings (Massachusetts Avenue, several streets around Kendall Square, Cambridge Street, and Gore Street) require trains to come to a near-complete stop before proceeding.Fact|date=February 2007

If it were to be upgraded, the right-of-way is severely limited and the corridor has been proposed as part of the Urban Ring project. Additionally only Worcester Line trains would be directly served. Trains from other southern lines would have to detour and reverse all the way to the west of Back Bay and Yawkey stations to reach it.

An above-ground rail link between South and North Stations was once proposed by the local Association for Public Transportation (which also supports the underground North-South Rail Link). [http://car-free.com/] This would eliminate the need to take multiple rapid transit lines to get between terminals, but would still require two transfers for Amtrak and commuter rail passengers passing through downtown Boston.

External links

* [http://www.bostonforum.com/my_ideax.php?group_id=13 Boston Transportation Resources - North-South Rail Link]
* [http://web.archive.org/web/20061128172921/http://www.mbta.com/projects_underway/northsouthstation.asp MBTA North-South Rail Link project Major Investment Study]

References