I remember my first visit to Pittsfield, Massachusetts, in 1992. I was newly arrived in Berkshire County from London, in England, where I had worked for nearly a decade after college. I’d landed in a little New England town called Great Barrington. My head was full of utopian ideas. I’d been reading an American writer [...]
The Housatonic Line is included in the governor’s $18-billion transportation bond bill, now pending before House Ways and Means, and thanks to Rep. Smitty Pignatelli and with the support of the Western Mass Rail Coalition, "Worcester to Springfield" was changed to "Worcester to Pittsfield." So in the bond bill there is now an allocation to [...]
Delighted to see this. The Train Campaign and Western Mass Rail Coalition look forward to participating. Join us! The Western MA Legislative Delegation and community partners invite you to join us for: HOW DO WE GET THERE FROM HERE? WESTERN MA TRANSPORTATION FORUM KEYNOTE BY SENATOR ERIC LESSER Friday, September 13, 2019 9:00 a.m. – 12:00 [...]
Click to download PDF of "Berkshire Line? Berkshire Flyer?" oped by Karen Christensen of the Train Campaign, and visit Berkshire Trade & Commerce for the full issue.
From my perspective, there really is only one rail proposal for travel to New York City that makes sense. My main concern is that with limited funds pursuing a sub-optimal alternative (e.g., Berkshire Flyer) will delay and short change other better approaches, or even worse, offer unintended reasons for the politicians and other skeptics to [...]
We recently came across this passage about a train ride from Boston to Pittsfield written by the great civil rights activist Frederick Douglass. It comes from Douglass's My Bondage and My Freedom (1855). Riding from Boston to Albany, a few years ago, I found myself in a large car, well filled with passengers. The seat [...]
PanAm Main Line Through Pownal Provides Special Opportunities writes W. A. Klinger, a retired Amtrak conductor, who has graciously allowed us to share a proposal that would offer new passenger rail options to people in Vermont, Massachusetts, and New York. Part of his proposal is for a commuter rail link from North Pownal (including Willamstown and [...]
Last night’s transportation “Conversation” in Pittsfield was a bust. As you can see it this photo, there were six DOT people ranged at a head table with signs in front of them saying “Rail” “Bike” etc., and tables at the side of the room with computers. First, we had pitches from our three state reps. [...]
Join us tomorrow, Thursday, October 29, 2015, at 6.00pm in Pittsfield, MA, to tell officials from the MassDOT (Department of Transportation) how important passenger train service is to western Massachusetts communities and businesses. Our efforts at the Train Campaign continue, and we need your voice and continued support. You'll have a chance to get updates, [...]
I’m just back from China where I took the high-speed train from Shanghai to Beijing, and am writing to ask for you to help raise the profile of the Housatonic passenger rail line with the US Secretary of Transportation and our state legislators. Federal funding could play a huge role in moving the project forward, [...]
A big thank-you to the companies that sponsor the Train Campaign
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