Adapted from Robert Whitcomb’s “Digital Diary,’’ in GoLocal24.com
Will the return, after many decades, of passenger rail service between Boston, Fall River and New Bedford and intermediate spots late this year be a big boost to the long economically challenged old mill towns? Both Fall River and New Bedford are often lumped together, though they’re different in many ways, especially in that New Bedford is a big fishing port and the former whaling capital, as well as an arts center, and hilly Fall River is more physically dramatic.
Commuter service could enable some folks who otherwise would be stuck trying to find “affordable” housing in pricey Greater Boston to find much cheaper digs in those cities and, we hope, add new economic and other energy to urban parts of the South Coast in general. Could it even lure more than a few Boston area businesses to set up shop there?
The current MBTA plan for South Coast Rail calls for three morning peak commuting trains and three late-in-the day peak commuting trains to both New Bedford and Fall River. The trips from the cities to South Station in Boston are projected to take about 90 minutes, which could sometimes be faster than driving. The service will mean six morning and evening trains to Taunton and Middleboro; all the trains will make those stops. During off-peak periods, trains will run every 3 to 3½ hours.
Frequency, reliability and marketing are key to winning over enough drivers to mass transit. I’m not sure that the planned schedules would be frequent enough. Yes, taxpayers will heavily subsidize the service -- as they do the highways. The train service, if it’s promoted enough, might, over the years, gradually lighten traffic on those roads a bit.
