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Cape Codder(train)

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Cape Codder
TheCape Codderat Buzzards Bay in July 1996
Overview
Service typeInter-city rail
StatusDiscontinued
LocaleNew York,Connecticut,Rhode Island,Massachusetts
PredecessorDay Cape Codder
First serviceJuly 3, 1986
Last serviceSeptember 29, 1996
Former operator(s)New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad
Amtrak
Route
TerminiNew York City
Hyannis, Massachusetts
Stops8
Distance travelled264 miles (425 km)
Average journey time6 hours 28 minutes
Service frequencyWeekly
Train number(s)234/235
On-board services
Class(es)Reserved coach and Club Service
Catering facilitiesOn-board cafe
Technical
Rolling stockAmfleetcoaches
Track gauge4 ft8+1⁄2in(1,435 mm)

TheCape Codderwas a seasonalpassenger trainoperated byAmtrakbetweenNew York CityandHyannis, Massachusetts,onCape Cod.It operated during the summer between 1986 and 1996. It was the first regular service from New York to the Cape since 1964. TheNew York, New Haven and Hartford Railroadpreviously had operateda train under this nameuntil 1958.

From its demise in 1996 there was no passenger rail service to Cape Cod until the beginning of the summer of 2013 when theMBTA'sCapeFLYERbegan connecting Boston'sSouth StationtoHyannis.

History

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TheCape Codderused theNortheast CorridortoAttleboro, Massachusetts,where it split to reachCape Cod
TheCape Codderat Buzzards Bay, with an ex-New Haven RailroadRS-1leading, in July 1990

NY,NH&H service

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Service beyond Harwich to Provincetown at the end of the Cape ended by the late 1930s. Regular service was suspended from 1941 to 1948, owing toWorld War II.[1]TheNew York, New Haven and Hartford Railroadran combined through trains with thePennsylvania RailroadfromWashingtonto Hyannis until 1958. TheDay Cape CodderandNeptunecombined to provide service six days per week July–September, with theDay Cape Codderoperating all days except Wednesday and Friday and theNeptuneoperating on Fridays only. The trains ran from New York to Hyannis, with a section splitting atBuzzards Bay, MassachusettsforWoods Hole, Massachusetts.Passengers coming from Boston connected inProvidence, Rhode Island.The PRR and the NH offered a night train,The Night Cape Codder,from Washington and New York on Friday nights. The companies offered a return train from the Cape on Sunday nights. The companies' New York–Cape Cod service from 1958 to 1964 was summer only. The New Haven Railroad stopped serving Cape Cod altogether in 1964.[2]: 109–110 [3][4]

The train operated as an express in Connecticut and on the Cape. In the latter case, it bypassed stations served by the Boston-Hyannis trains.

Station stops onDay Cape Codder:Grand Central Terminal,125th Street,Stamford,New Haven,New London,Providence,Taunton,Buzzards Bay,Yarmouth, Hyannis. The stations from 125th to Providence were only for receiving passengers, heading east, and the oppose, when heading west. At Buzzard Bay, a branch would split forWoods Holewhere passengers could catch steamers forNantucket Island.[5]

Amtrak service

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Amtrak launched theCape Codderon July 3, 1986. The original schedule included four trains weekly: trains from New York to Hyannis on Friday evening (#272) and Saturday morning (#270), and trains from Hyannis to New York on Saturday (#271) and Sunday afternoon (#273). Amtrak advertised the service as "Washington–New York–Hyannis ", although only #272 originated in Washington. All other connections required a connecting train. The train operated through September and featured" Club Service: Deluxe reserved seating. Beverages and complimentary meals served at your seat. ".[6][7]

For the 1988 season Amtrak established connections with theCape Cod and Hyannis Railroad,atourist railroadwhich in partnership with Massachusetts offered daily service from Boston to the Cape, originating at theBraintree MBTA station.Amtrak passengers coming off theNortheast Corridorcould be through-ticketed destinations on the Cape and would change to Cape Cod and Hyannis train atAttleboro.Separate sections servedHyannisandFalmouth.This service supplemented the weekendCape Codder,once again providing daily service to the Cape.[8]This interline service did not resume in 1989 after the Cape Cod and Hyannis Railroad folded.[9]Amtrak service to Attleboro ended at the same time.[10]Massachusetts provided financial support for the trains from 1986–1988.[11]

Beginning in 1989 Amtrak truncated the Saturday round-trip toProvidencewith a scheduled connection to another train; this round-trip was namedClamdiggerfor the 1990 season and given new numbers (#433 westbound and #438 eastbound). The Friday/Sunday train pair became #234/#235.[12]By 1993 the Saturday service was gone and the Friday/Sunday pair operated to New York only, with connections south.[13]For its final season in 1996 theCape Codderoriginated in Boston, ran down the Northeast Corridor to Providence, then turned and ran east to Hyannis. Service from Washington and New York was available via a connecting train in Providence.[14]

Amtrak did not resume theCape Codderfor the 1997 season. The limited schedule, coupled with the fact that passengers found it difficult to navigate the Cape without an automobile, discouraged potential passengers. The service carried just 1,200 passengers in 1996, representing a 50% drop from 1995.[15]

Since its demise in 1996, were periodic discussions about reinstating passenger rail service from Boston to reduce car traffic to and from the Cape, with officials in Bourne seeking to extendMBTA Commuter Railservice from Middleboro to Buzzards Bay.[16]Scheduled passenger service between Boston and Hyannis resumed in May 2013 with the inauguration of theCapeFLYER,a collaboration between theCape Cod Regional Transit Authorityand theMassachusetts Bay Transportation Authority,and it was made permanent in the 2014 summer season after a successful trial run during the first year.

See also

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References

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  1. ^Baer, Christopher T. (September 8, 2009)."NAMED TRAINS OF THE PRR INCLUDING THROUGH SERVICES"(PDF).Pennsylvania Railroad Technical and Historical Society.
  2. ^Lynch, Peter E. (2003).New Haven Railroad.Voyageur Press.ISBN9780760314418.Archived fromthe originalon January 3, 2014.
  3. ^New Haven Railroad timetable.April 24, 1955 – via Wikimedia Commons.
  4. ^Karr, Ronald Dale (2017).The Rail Lines of Southern New England(2 ed.). Branch Line Press. p. 330.ISBN9780942147124.
  5. ^Official Guide of the Railways.June 1949. Tables 39, 40.
  6. ^Amtrak(July 3, 1986)."Metroliner and Cape Codder timetable, 1986".RetrievedJune 28,2013.
  7. ^Wren, Patricia (July 5, 1986)."Ties renewed on N.Y.-Cape train ride".Boston Globe.RetrievedJune 28,2013– via Newspapers.Open access icon
  8. ^Kolleth, Michael (May 29, 1988)."Daily Rail Service to Cape Is Returning".The New York Times.RetrievedJune 29,2013.
  9. ^Ackerman, Jerry (July 5, 1989)."Mass. spent $1.2m on depots where trains now seldom go".Boston Globe.p. 34 – via Newspapers.Open access icon
  10. ^Saltzman, Jonathan (June 25, 1989)."Trains to the Cape don't stop in Attleboro anymore".Providence Journal.Archived fromthe originalon February 1, 2013.RetrievedJune 29,2013.
  11. ^Belcher, Jonathan."Changes to Transit Service in the MBTA district"(PDF).Boston Street Railway Association.
  12. ^Amtrak (April 1, 1991)."National Train Timetables".Museum of Railway Timetables.p. 27.RetrievedJune 29,2013.
  13. ^Amtrak (May 2, 1993)."Northeast Timetable".Museum of Railway Timetables.p. 38.RetrievedJune 29,2013.
  14. ^Amtrak (April 14, 1996)."Northeast Timetable".Museum of Railway Timetables.p. 26.RetrievedJune 29,2013.
  15. ^"Amtrak cancels NYC-Cape Cod train".The Standard-Times.New Bedford. Associated Press. May 11, 1997. Archived fromthe originalon April 19, 2014.RetrievedJuly 3,2012.
  16. ^"The Cape and Islands NPR Station - Cape Cod Rail Connection".Archived fromthe originalon October 13, 2007.RetrievedJanuary 11,2009.

Further reading

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