Bill would commit $75M to Fitchburg commuter line
By Christian Schiavone, The Acton Beacon - 12/13/2007

Acton, Mass. - Local residents who struggle to find parking and brave delays and lengthy travel times to take the commuter rail into Boston each morning are in for some good news.

Gov. Deval Patrick last month announced his plan to provide the Fitchburg commuter rail line, which stops in South Acton, with $75 million in funding for improvements aimed at cutting the travel time into Boston and adding more frequent trips. The commitment also makes the rail line eligible for an additional $75 million in federal transportation funding.

The long awaited improvements to the commuter rail, plagued with delays, are part of Patrick’s $2.9 billion transportation bond bill. The bill would also fund sorely needed improvements to roads and bridges around the state over the next three years.

“This legislation will allow us to address many of our most pressing transportation needs while we work towards long-term transportation reform,” Patrick said in a press release.

Planned improvements to the rail line include replacing sections of old track, which force trains to slow down for portions of the trip, and adding a second track between Acton and Ayer and in-cabin signals, all of which stand to significantly shorten the commute. Currently, it takes about an hour to go from South Acton to North Station in Boston when trains are running on schedule.

Part of the funding would also be used to provide wireless Internet access for commuters.

State Sen. Pam Resor, D-Acton, a longtime advocate of improvements to the rail line, said the changes would make the commuter rail a more viable alternative to commuting by car, relieving the environmental impact of driving as well as congestion on local roadways.

“If [the commuter rail] is more reliable in terms of being on time and making shorter trips to Boston and people can bring their laptops, more people will ride the train,” she said.

State Rep. Jamie Eldridge, D-Acton, said the improvements to the rail line would even benefit Acton residents who don’t regularly use the commuter rail by decreasing traffic on local highways.

“If we have a commuter rail that’s more on time and has more frequent trips, that will get more people off of Route 2 and the Mass Pike and improve the life of Acton residents,” he said.

Eldridge said more frequent trips west of town will also increase local residents’ access to Devens, which has grown into a relative hotbed of economic development in central Massachusetts.

The bill does not include funding for increasing parking at the Central Street station, one of the most pressing problems for Acton commuters who struggle to find a spot before the lot fills up at about 8 a.m. on weekdays.

But Eldridge said more frequent stops west of Acton could relieve the parking crunch in Acton by decreasing the number of residents from surrounding towns who come to Acton to try and snag a spot at the town’s already overcrowded lot.

Over the past several years, the town has tried to cope with the lack of parking in South Acton by increasing the number of parking spaces reserved for Acton residents in the commuter rail lot, as well as adding parking on Jones Field.

“We’re maxed out for parking as it is,” said Doré Hunter, chairman of the Board of Selectmen, adding, “Ultimately, any improvements to the rail line are a benefit.”

Hunter said that he hoped the improvements to the rail line would add pressure on towns west of Acton to add parking and reduce the number of residents who drive to Acton to take the train.

Like many Acton residents, Hunter settled in Acton because of its accessibility to Boston via the commuter rail.

Town officials are also looking into the possibility of setting up a town shuttle service that could ferry commuters to the train station from spots around town allowing local residents to leave their cars at home and avoid scrambling for a parking space.