Western MA Amtrak Expansion Gets $3.5M In Federal Funding

WORCESTER, MA — A train route that would connect Boston and Worcester to cities in the western half of Massachusetts got a major funding boost from the federal government on Monday.

The Healey-Driscoll Administration announced that $3.5 million will go toward advancing the West-East Rail, which will run from Boston to Springfield in two hours. The money will be used to support the Boston-Albany Corridor Service Development Plan, which is an essential step in expanding and enhancing the train service, according to a news release.

“We are full steam ahead on building West-East Rail, and this latest federal funding win brings us one step closer to delivering this for Massachusetts,” said Governor Maura Healey.

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MassLive reported that at first, Amtrak would have two trains a day from Hartford to Springfield, and then from Worcester and Boston. The service would eventually go as far west as Albany, New York.

The project has now secured a total of $150 million in federal funding to make the new railroad line a reality, according to the news release.

The route would enter Compass Rail, which is made up of existing and proposed services that intersect in Worcester. That includes the Vermonter, which travels between Washington, D.C., and Greenfield.

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