Connecticut’s Shoreline East Train Service now has 5 additional peak-time trains.
The service runs from New London to Stamford. Ridership declined in 2018 due to track projects and a lack of locomotives to pull the trains. COVID-19 further hurt ridership.
Susan Feaster founded the Shore Line East Riders Advocacy Group. She said ridership has started to recover.
“The other day, I tweeted out that when I got on the train in New Haven at State Street, the conductor announced that the train is full, please be prepared to move your personal belongings and let someone sit next to you,” Feaster said. “That proves that people are riding this train. On this Northeast corridor, we’re not just a few towns where people are working from home, as you can see from all the cars out here. People are using this train line, I can attest to it.”
State Senator Christine Cohen, who chairs the state’s Transportation Committee, said she’s fighting for a full return to service.
“What’s really great about this is, it was a bipartisan effort to bring our beloved Shoreline East Train Line back to its former pre-pandemic glory,” Cohen said. “We really want to see more train riders taking advantage of fast and efficient service. Expanding Shoreline East in the wake of some budget cuts we experienced just a couple of years ago has been a number one priority.”
The $5 million for the increased train service came from state American Rescue Plan Act funding, and it will only last around a year.
