INTERMODAL RAILFREIGHT CAN HELP EASE CONGESTION ON I-95
 By Richard C. Carpenter

We have tried carpooling, vanpooling, buses, commuter and intercity trains, even bike paths-and we are about to start barging freight on Long Island Sound.  Now is the time to shift some truck freight to the rails!
Rail freight used to be a major component along what has now become known as the I-95 corridor.  In the thirties the former New Haven Railroad pioneered the use of truck trailers on flatcars operating every night between Boston and New York City.  Until the sixties Florida perishables came by train to New England and were barged across New York Harbor, over the Hell Gate Bridge and right up the New Haven Line.  This short barge operation still exists, and has grown in recent years.
Now, despite the fact that the New Haven Line is owned by Connecticut, no through freight trains operate between New York City and New Haven.  The only freight is an occasional train of stone from quarries east of  New Haven to distributors on Long Island, and short local freight trains operating separately from New Haven and New York City.
The historic difficulty has been the lack of an all-rail freight connection across the Hudson.  There are two tracks under the river into Penn Station, but they are committed to passenger trains and have very close overhead and side clearances.  Containers on flatcars and "Road Railers" could use these tunnels, but presently do not.
New York has completed both feasibility and environmental studies for a new Cross Harbor Rail Freight Tunnel.  Federal transportation funds have been allocated in the pending transportation reauthorization bill under a new funding category called "projects of national and regional significance."  Connecticut should strongly support this tunnel!
It is reported that ConnDOT has said that rail freight cannot be allowed because of passenger train traffic and the need to repair tracks at night.   At a symposium held in Stamford by the East of Hudson Rail Freight Operations Task Force, a Metro North official stated that, "during other than rush hours, there is room for one intermodal rail freight train per hour in each direction."  After midnight there are essentially no trains running until 5a.m.  Track maintenance is carried out during the day by removing one of the four tracks (or one of the three tracks east of Devon) from service.  If work needs to be done at night, it is usually done one track at a time.
            It is worth noting that in 1954, the New Haven Railroad moved more trains, including 12 to 15 through freight trains, with older, single-direction signaling.  Don't believe anyone who says the New Haven Line is at capacity.
Another excuse is that since 40% of the trucks on I-95 are making stops in Connecticut, rail freight trains would not work.  If this is true, some of the remaining through trucks can and should be diverted to rail.  It is reported that significant amounts of freight are destined for the New Haven area.  North of New Haven, the extensive Cedar Hill yard (now mostly unused) stands ready to become a rail freight intermodal terminal.   When the Cross Harbor Tunnel is completed, it could serve as one of the rail intermodal terminals serving Connecticut and New  England.
To sum up, what is needed is VISION!  Increased rail freight would be safer, quieter, cause less air pollution, provide choice for shippers, save energy and improve the quality of life.
Richard C. Carpenter was Executive Director from 1966-1999 of the South Western Regional Planning Agency.  He is a member of Connecticut Public Transportation Commission, I-95 Coastal Corridor Transportation Investment Area Board and East of Hudson Rail Freight Operations Task Force.  He is the author of "A Railroad Astlas of the United States in 1946" published by Johns Hopkins University Press.