NEWINGTON, Conn. — The Connecticut Department of Transportation will hold the first of a series of hearings on proposed changes to rail and bus service today in New Haven, Conn., with three other hearing also set for this week. Fare increases are also being proposed.
The most significant changes will come on the Shore Line East commuter line, which would see weekday service cut from 23 trains to 16, with one train (No. 1640) departing New Haven eastbound at 5:45 p.m. to eliminate a three-hour gap. These changes would not take place until after the conclusion of the current Amtrak Filter Interlocking project, which has Shore Line East service operating on a temporary schedule [see “Connecticut’s Shore Line East set for schedule changes …,” Trains News Wire, Aug. 31, 2023]. Other changes will see two trains a day cut from weekday schedules on the New Haven, New Canaan, and Danbury lines.
Details on the proposed fare increases, the first since January 2018 on most lines and the first since 2016 on Shore Line East, are available here.
The hearing today (Oct. 2) is at the Kennedy Mitchell Hall of Records in New Haven, with an open house beginning at 5 p.m. and the hearing from 6-8 p.m. Tuesday’s hearing will be at the Capitol Region Council of Governments in New Haven, Conn., on the same schedule, while two online hearings will be held Wednesday. More details on all those hearings are available here.
