Connecticut Department of Transportation issued the following announcement on Dec. 3.
The Hartford Line saw record train ridership between New Haven and Springfield during Thanksgiving weekend. The Connecticut Department of Transportation (CTDOT) ran extra CTrail Hartford Line trains on November 26-27 and December 1st.
CTDOT deployed 10 additional CTrail trains on the Tuesday and Wednesday before Thanksgiving and four additional trains on the Sunday after. The added trains were scheduled 5-10 minutes after Amtrak trains. The CTrail trains provided additional seats to alleviate overcrowding on many sold-out Amtrak trains.
“The extra trains were a resounding success and surpassed expectations,” said CTDOT Commissioner Joseph Giulietti. “Our preparation and teamwork paid off.”
In 2018, more than 3,500 passengers chose CTrail and Amtrak the Wednesday before Thanksgiving, setting a one-day ridership record. This year the Hartford Line carried more than 4,000 riders the Wednesday before Thanksgiving – a new ridership record. Last year on the Sunday after Thanksgiving, the Hartford Line carried more than 3,000 riders; this year there were more than 3,600 riders.
“We are very happy to announce the success of these additional Hartford Line trains which met the heavy travel demand,” said Richard Andreski, CTDOT Public Transportation Bureau Chief. “It was great to see everyone pull together to accomplish this – Amtrak, CTrail crews and CTDOT staff.”
“People in Connecticut have wanted this rail system for a long time and are using it to avoid the headaches of driving,” said Carl Jackson, CTDOT Rail Administrator. “It was great to see everyone on these busy holiday trains.”
Information about all rail services in Connecticut is available at www.CTrail.com.
Original source can be found here.
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