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Transit Adventures

Metro-North all the way to New Haven State Street on an Express to Fordham, packed in Stamford — back from Boston via the Inland Route, stopping at Union Stations (Part 5)

It’s an easy but not particularly nice under a highway half-mile walk to New Haven-State Street where I see Train #275 pass as I reach the pedestrian overpass that leads to the simple island platform. I head downstairs and photograph a Shore Line East Train powered by leased Amtrak P40s still in their paint scheme with the ugly Connecticut Commuter Rail Logos arrive and depart at 5:45. This train also has manually operated doors on the ex-VRE coaches and is staffed by two Amtrak conductors in Amtrak uniforms. I go back up to the overpass to buy my $12 ticket from the TVM. I also realize that the line from New Haven-State Street to NH-Union Station is the only section of track on Metro-North I haven’t ridden on one of the their own trains.

My Metro-North train enters of M8s arrives at 5:54 from Union Station. As we leave State Street the automated annoucement goes through all the station stops and says The Next Stop is New Haven, but I got on in New Haven! New Haven-Union Station isn’t specified. We pass the train yard and slowly enter. There is a nice big crowd waiting to board. The sun through the open door is blinding.

We leave Union Station at 6:02 and pass the shops, two SLE trainsets inside. We wrong rail in the open cut out of New Haven. The M8 seats are much better than the MBTAs. Going over the bridge out of New Haven we head over to the correct track.

  • 6:06 – skip the West Haven station under construction
  • 6:08 – slow down again. I notice the new catenary. I ask if I can switch at Fordham for Tremont on the same ticket (it’s the same fare zone) but am told no but maybe they can simply charge me an extension.The conductor hands me my ticket back, at least I got to keep my NH-State street ticket as a souvenir. I notice my seat check is the star, not 1 for Grand Central. The 7:39 Harlem Line local skips Tremont so I’m not going to try it.
  • We stop in Milford and I decide to read.
  • 6:17 – an Acela passes us going over the Housatonic River.
  • 6:30 – Fairfield-Metro stop with a temporary platform since the right two tracks are out.
  • 6:50  – somewhere around Southport I fall asleep. I get a Bench mate for the 3 seater at South Norwalk and feel awake again as a northbound Acela and Metro-North Local train pass us at the same time on the 3 track railroad with its modern catenary wire.
  • 7:04 – leave Stamford, the conductor comes through with his final ticket inspection. My seat check is collected. I bet no one would bat an eye if I continue to Grand Central. Fordham though is the fastest way home on What is the non-stop express run in the dusk down a four track railroad. A far cry from the single track between Worcester
  • 7:14 – look up bypassing Harrison, were on the right hand track, the left 3 are for expresses heading to Connecticut during the Am rush. This is the fastest I’ve gone today and the ride feels smoother than on Acela that has to turn its tilt mechanism off while running down the Metro-North tracks.
  • 7:18 – New Rochelle and I curve onto new track for this trip, away from the Amtrak Hell Gate Line that I rode over on my way up to Boston yesterday. We slow down and lose ventilation. I don’t notice the third rail yet.
  • 7:20 – Pelham and I notice the start of the the rail followed by the catenary as the ventilation system turns on and off.
  • 7:22 – Mt Vernon East with temperary light bulbs, new lighting is being installed.
  • 7:24 – slowly switch onto the Harlem Line through Woodlawn.

I get off at Fordham at 7:28. I go up to street level. I put my Unlimited into the MVM for my receipt for the Bx12SBS that will take me to the A train at 207th Street. A few other buses pass and when my bus comes at 7:38 packed its hard to spot. The SBSs now can’t use their distinctive blinking blue lights after SI driver centric politicians got mad at the S74 and claimed them as illegal the motor vehicle law says their for volunteer firefighters but their aren’t any in NYC.

  • 7:43 – Jerome Avenue.
  • 7:50 – over the broadway bridge into Manhattan.
  • 7:57 – on the A train at 207 Street, when will it leave?
  • 8:01 – the ding for my A train’s departure.
  • 8:02 – do we have the line up? And leave slowly for the crossover to the downtown track.
  • 8:07 – 181st Street and home.

All in all it was quite a good but exhausting day. I can’t say I’ll ride the inland route again anytime soon. The biggest surprise was my hour in the wonderfully restored Wooster-Union Station that I had no idea had been so wonderfully restored. The worst station is Springfield, what a dump and its almost worse having to walk by all the abandoned underpass infrastructure. The most frustrating moment was waiting for the Bx12 along Fordham Road and unable to spot it. I also didn’t realize what a dump Springfield’s Train station is. The day wasn’t particularly cheap either. It was more expensive than a $49 advanced purchase ticket on a NYP-BOS Regional at $53 for four railroad tickets (plus $1.50 for the MBTA bus and a swipe on my Unlimited Ride MetroCard for the subway, and $58 if I boarded my commuter train at South Station) If I had been able to book three days ahead it would have dropped to $49.40 with my 10% NARP discount. The cheapest walk-up Northeast Regional Amtrak fare from New York to Boston is $71 ($63.90). I could have also just taken the bus for between $10 and $15.