Bay Colony Railroad
The Bay Colony Railroad (reporting mark BCLR) is a shortline railroad (STB Class III) operating in Massachusetts.
Overview | |
---|---|
Headquarters | Braintree, Massachusetts |
Reporting mark | BCLR |
Locale | Massachusetts |
Dates of operation | 1982–present |
Predecessor | Conrail |
Technical | |
Track gauge | 4 ft 8+1⁄2 in (1,435 mm) standard gauge |
Formerly operating along most of the south coast region (including all lines on Cape Cod), Bay Colony currently operates only along a roughly six-mile stretch of track between New Bedford and Westport, referred to as the Watuppa Branch, as well as a section of the Millis Branch from Medfield Junction to Millis. In addition to moving freight for its customers, Bay Colony also performs AAR-certified repairs on rolling stock and contract track construction projects for other railroads. It has a sister railroad, the Seminole Gulf Railway, which is based out of Fort Myers, Florida.
History
The Bay Colony railroad was chartered on March 31, 1977, with the intent of taking over freight service on former New Haven lines from Conrail, which was planning to abandon service.[1] The lines were purchased by the state government, and Bay Colony took over all freight operations on the lines on June 12, 1982 with a 25-year contract.[2]
Bay Colony expressed interest in purchasing the Belfast and Moosehead Lake Railroad in 1983.[3]
The contract for the railroad lines owned by the State of Massachusetts administered by the Executive Office of Transportation (EOT), which included the Cape Cod main expired on December 31, 2007. It was awarded to a new company, the Massachusetts Coastal Railroad (“Mass Coastal”), which took over on January 1, 2008. At that time the Bay Colony ceased operation on those lines, but continued to maintain operations in other areas of the state, namely the Millis branch (until 2018) and the Watuppa branch.[2] The Bay Colony Railroad is headquartered in Braintree, Massachusetts, and directly owns 6 miles (9.7 km) of active tracks within Massachusetts.[4]
Former Millis Branch
Bay Colony continued operations along the Millis Branch, a roughly eight-mile segment of track between Needham Junction and the former Millis station. This line interchanges with CSX at Medfield. By May 2018, Bay Colony had ceased regular operations of this branch following the closure of GAR Roofing, the biggest customer on the line.[4] Bay Colony still has a locomotive stored on the line and has moved equipment since.
Watuppa Branch
Bay Colony also operates along the Watuppa Branch (also referred to as the North Dartmouth Industrial Track), a roughly six-mile stretch of track in the south coast of the state. The branch diverges from the New Bedford Secondary and passes through the town of Dartmouth before terminating in Westport. Bay Colony operates all freight rail along this line, and interchanges with Mass Coastal in New Bedford.[4]
See also
References
- "about bay colony". Archived from the original on 2003-04-07. Retrieved 2007-10-18.
- "Massachusetts Coastal named to operate commonwealth-owned lines". Trains News Wire. Kalmbach Publishing. 2007-10-08. Retrieved 2007-10-18.
- Griffin, Walter (March 7, 1984). "Council Gets Briefing on B&M". Bangor Daily News. pp. 1, 16.
- HDR; AECOM; Fitzgerald & Halliday, Inc.; HMMH (May 2018). MassDOT State Rail Plan (Report). p. 35. Retrieved June 17, 2023.