On that midnight train to ... Middlebury? Anticipated stimulus would fund passenger route on existing tracks

Author: Elizabeth Scarinci

For decades, the town of Middlebury has not had a functional passenger train. During college breaks, students arrange for taxis or carpools, or sometimes resort to asking a friend or advisor to drive them to the nearest train station, a 45-minute drive away in downtown Rutland. If the state of Vermont receives grant money from the federal stimulus package, however, Middlebury could see a passenger railway service through the town as early as 2011.

The Vermont Agency of Transportation (VAT) will submit a grant application later this month to request $126 million of stimulus money to run the Western Corridor line. This would provide passenger service from Bennington to Burlington, stopping in the town of Middlebury. If Vermont receives the money, construction could start as early as this summer and will require two construction seasons.

The passenger train that used to run through Middlebury ceased operations in the 1950s, when the state bought the line to run freights. The track runs from Rutland to Burlington, but still only runs freight trains. If the government awards the money to Vermont, most of it will go toward track upgrades. David Wolfson, president of the Vermont Railway, stressed the importance of track improvements.

"The boxcars don't care if they're rocking back and forth a little," Wolfson said, "but if you spill people's coffee, they get upset."

He added that VAT could hypothetically run a passenger train now, but it would be slower than most people would tolerate. He mentioned overwhelming support for the plan. "Everyone