Worcester's 'Heart-To-Hub' Train Won't Be Express Anymore: Keolis

WORCESTER, MA — Worcester's Heart-To-Hub commuter express train to Boston will get much slower beginning in October.

Keolis, the MBTA's commuter rail operator, unveiled new fall schedules this week. One major change is switching the express Heart-To-Hub service to one that stops at every station between Worcester and West Natick.

"For passengers on the Worcester Line, the Heart-To-Hub will now make all stops between Worcester and West Natick and run express between West Natick and Boston Landing," Keolis said in an update Monday.

The two daily Heart-To-Hub trains left Worcester at 6:30 a.m. and arrived at South Station at 7:35 a.m. with one stop in Framingham. The Heart-To-Hub trains left South Station weekdays at 4:55 p.m. and arrived back in Worcester at 6:02 p.m. with other stops in Boston and Framingham.

Under the new arrangement, Heart-To-Hub trains will stop in Grafton, Westborough, Southborough and Ashland before Framingham and West Natick.

The Heart-To-Hub service began in 2016 and was the first time the state's two biggest cities were connected by a high-speed train. Heart-To-Hub was suspended in 2020 during the pandemic, and returned in October 2022.

Worcester Line passengers will also see an additional peak trip to and from Framingham, making stops at all stations between Framingham and South Station, according to Keolis.