Massachusetts Coastal Railroad
The Massachusetts Coastal Railroad (reporting mark MC) is a Class III railroad serving south-eastern Massachusetts. The railroad maintains track from Hyannis to Framingham, operating over 135 miles of track between Hyannis and Fall River/New Bedford.[1] The railroad is the successor operator of portions of the Bay Colony Railroad.
Overview
History[edit]
On December 31, 2007, the contract to operate the freight railroad lines owned by the Commonwealth of Massachusetts administered by the Executive Office of Transportation (EOT) expired. These railroad lines included the Cape Main Line, as well as several shorter lines both on Cape Cod and in Southeastern Massachusetts. The new contract was awarded to a new company, the Massachusetts Coastal Railroad, which took over on January 1, 2008. At that time, the Bay Colony ceased operations on those lines, but continues to operate in other areas of the Commonwealth, including on the Watuppa Branch in Dartmouth and Westport, and the Millis Branch in Millis.[2]
On November 16, 2023, the railroad indicated that it would be purchasing the Watuppa Branch and Millis Branch from the Bay Colony and taking over operations on the lines.[3][4] The purchase of the Millis Branch was initially rejected by the Surface Transportation Board due to uncertainty about the status of the line,[5] but the line's operations were ultimately taken over Massachusetts Coastal later that year.
The Massachusetts Coastal Railroad is headquartered in Lakeville, Massachusetts.[6]