Daily service on the much-anticipated New Haven to Springfield CTrail commuter line began Monday with light traffic and no major hiccups.
State residents flocked to stations over the weekend for free trial rides, but the hectic weekend gave way to a modest Monday morning as the line’s bread and butter — workers headed to Hartford or New Haven and beyond — began their commutes.
Commuter traffic was light, but those standing on station platforms were excited about the new option. Trains bound for New Haven were delayed by a few minutes, but the Hartford-bound trains from the south were mostly on schedule.
Among the new rail commuters was Lyn Willard, who was going to New Haven from Meriden and plans to make the train ride a part of her workweek routine.
“It sure beats driving on 91,” Willard said. “My daughter and I went down to New Haven this weekend to try it out. It seemed to go really fast, even though we were standing.”
Red-shirted CTrail ambassadors were at the stations Monday to point travelers in the right direction as people get acquainted with the new service options.
In Wallingford, 15-20 people got on the 6:55 a.m. northbound train to Hartford, and about a dozen got on a slightly behind-schedule train to the capital city at around 8:30 a.m.
“I’m really excited about it,” said Jane Callanan, who lives close to the Wallingford station and plans to take the train into Hartford for her new daily commute.
“I lived in New York City for years and used public transportation,” she said. “It just makes sense. It’s good for the environment, it’s fewer miles on my car and it’s less time sitting in traffic.”
The Hartford Line opened Saturday, providing more frequent and less costly service between New Haven and Springfield, Mass.
State officials envision that the more than $750 million transportation project will become a driver of economic growth throughout Connecticut and the surrounding region by allowing people to get around more easily.
State Department of Transportation Commissioner James Redeker rode the first train out of New Haven Monday morning. He said midday Monday that he met people heading to work, people in the state on business trips, students and one man from Georgia who loves trains so much he came to Connecticut just to ride the new line.
“There was a real mix of people on the train, even that early in the morning,” Redeker said. “We’re interested in seeing how people respond. This is truly a regional rail service that makes connections.”
He said rider statistics from the first day might not be available until Tuesday because collecting the data requires coordination with Amtrak.
Expectations are high, but projecting the number of people who would use the new service wasn’t on DOT’s radar. Amtrak trains have run the line for years, but at limited hours not made for people commuting to work in the Greater Hartford and New Haven areas.
“This is a service that has never existed before,” Redeker said. “People were absolutely thrilled that there was more service and earlier service. At six round trips a day, the [Amtrak] trips were really limited. It can now become something people can depend on.”
CTrail offered residents a free ride over the weekend to see how the service operates. Thousands took the state up on its offer, and trains were filled to capacity throughout the day on Saturday. On Sunday, cancellations and delays along with more large crowds caused some hiccups for the new service.
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy said Monday that 21,850 riders tried out the train line Saturday and Sunday.
“There’s undoubtedly a sense of excitement about this long-overdue train service,” Malloy said in a written statement. “We also recognize that a new rail line like this takes time to grow and become part of the everyday lives of the residents of central Connecticut. This weekend showed that the potential is there. What we must remember is that this is not just about transit – it’s about building vibrant communities and continuing to make Connecticut a more attractive place to live, visit, and do business.”
One train was offline Sunday for a compressor issue that affected its brake system, but it was back in service Monday morning, Redeker said.
At 7 a.m. the platform at Hartford’s Union Station was decidedly quieter than it had been over the weekend. A dozen commuters stood on the platform with headphones in, clutching cups of coffee.
Sebastian Iagrossi, a student at the UConn School of Law, walked over from his apartment near the station to take the train to his summer internship in New Haven.
“I took Amtrak before because that was the only option,” he said. “This is approximately the same amount of time but this train runs a lot more often, which is nice because I don’t have to rush or worry about having to wait two hours for the next train.”
Iagrossi went to college in Philadelphia and was used to good public transportation.
“I said to my mother ‘Why isn’t there just a train line?’” he said. “I didn’t hear about this until six or seven months ago and, yeah, just a lot easier.”
The Hartford Line makes trips between New Haven and Hartford in 45-55 minutes. Hartford to Springfield is another 40-45 minutes.
Tickets between New Haven and Hartford cost $8, and $6 for the Hartford and Springfield section. The full run from Springfield to New Haven, where transfers to Metro North are available, costs $12.75.
Monthly, weekly and 10-ride passes are also available. Stations along the line are in Springfield, Windsor Locks, Windsor, Hartford, Berlin, Meriden, Wallingford and two in New Haven.
CTrail guides Anna Bergeron and Stephen Clout, there to help commuters, got to the Berlin station at 5 a.m.
There were two people who took the 5:30 a.m. train, and more commuters showed up for the one that departed soon after, they said. By 7:30 a.m., Clout estimated 20 to 30 people had boarded northbound and southbound trains.
“It seemed some are Berlin Amtrak regulars. Some ride daily, some a few days a week and others less often,” said Clout, one of dozens of state transportation employees working to help people during the start of the new service.
Genevieve Brewer lives in West Hartford and works at Yale University. She said Monday morning that she’s put a lot of miles on her car driving to and from New Haven.
She’s looking forward to reading on the train and using her 45-minute commute more productively.
“The drive itself isn’t terrible, but the fact that it’s 45 minutes, that’s time I could be doing other things,” Brewer said.
The New Haven service drew Jason Eiseman of North Haven to give the new commuting option a shot.
“I’ll probably give it more than a few days. I’ll probably use it most of the summer and see how it goes,” Eiseman said. “The price of gas being what it is and the price of parking in New Haven, those 10-ride tickets are less than filling up my car.”
At the Meriden station, Sarah Moisao said she hopes to use the train for her commute permanently, but she wants to see how it goes.
“I moved to Cheshire about three years ago, and when I heard they were building this line, I got excited,” Moisao said. “I’m looking forward to avoiding traffic.”
Gail Fournier was the only person waiting for the 6:53 a.m. southbound Hartford Line train at the Windsor station. The Windsor native lives in Greenwich and had been visiting family in her old hometown.
About the extra trains, Fournier said, “I think it’s awesome … it’s been very limiting having only the Amtrak trains.”
Madeline DeFilippis is working for the summer at a nonprofit in Manhattan while she’s home from the University of St. Andrews in Scotland. She’ll save about an hour every day using the Hartford Line and she’ll be able to do work and study while she rides, she said.
“Twice a week I take the train to New Haven and then on to Grand Central,” DeFilippis said. “I was driving to New Haven or having someone drive me. It takes a lot more time on Amtrak and I was planning on taking those long trains all summer.”
Courant staff writers Hayley Harding, Kathleen McWilliams, Jesse Leavenworth and Bill Leukhardt contributed to this story.
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