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November 12, 2013

Railroad adds summer Rockland-Boston route

By Darren Fishell

After reducing its summer passenger runs this year, operators of a Rockland-to-Brunswick rail line hope a new connection to Amtrak’s Downeaster train to Boston and lower ticket prices may boost ridership, which has been stagnant in recent years.

The Maine Eastern Railroad will keep a shortened season and pared-down schedule of one round trip a day, which it this summer reduced from two round trips. The weekend train’s schedule will align next summer with that of the Downeaster out of Brunswick.

“We’re anticipating a pretty good [ridership] increase [compared to] the past couple of years,” says Rudy Garbeley, a marketing associate with the railroad’s parent company, Morristown & Erie Railway Inc.

Maine Eastern Railroad remains primarily a freight line, serving 33 customers including Dragon Cement and Bath Iron Works. Garbeley says the passenger schedule does not interfere with its freight operations, which make most deliveries on weekdays.

Still, Garbeley says the new passenger service effort holds potential.

“[Passenger service] could be a great revenue source for us,” he says.

He adds that the company expects a new schedule and round-trip ticket package for the new Mid-Coast Limited line will boost its summer passenger ridership above previous years, which have remained largely flat since 2010 and 2011. The Bangor Daily News reported that ridership hovered around 15,000 in recent years after peaking at around 19,000 in 2008.

Meanwhile, ridership aboard the Downeaster has increased steadily in recent years. In September 2002, that train had around 20,000 riders. Last year and this year, the extended train service just topped 48,000 riders.

Interactive: See how Downeaster ridership has changed by month from 2002-2013. 

The seasonal passenger service had planned to connect with the Downeaster this year but was unable to develop a schedule that would align with trains out of Brunswick. Next year, the train will meet the Downeaster in Brunswick at 12:50 p.m. to ride up to Rockland. Just 30 minutes later, the train will depart Rockland to meet up with the 5:50 p.m. Downeaster train to Boston.

The train will run only on Friday, Saturday and Sunday between July 4 and Oct. 13.

For its new service, the railroad plans to cut fares from 10% to 20% over last season, which would put the price at about $85 for adults, according to the trade publication Atlantic Northeast Rails & Ports.

Garbeley says the decision to cut rates for the passenger service came in part from rider suggestions and a calculation of what that round-trip cost would be for a family of four.

The railroad will also operate its smaller Wiscasset Flyer line for the same summer weekends. Garbeley says the company expects that line to run one car that can hold 52 passengers, while the Mid-Coast Limited would use three cars for a capacity of 156 passengers. That train has also added a snack bar and gift shop on board.

Garbeley expects the improvements and new connection with the Downeaster will serve as a test of passenger service demand for a summer tourism connection from Rockland to Boston.

“If you don’t do it, you’ll never know,” Garbeley says. “We’re going to see how this plays out this season and if there’s demand for it, we would be interested in increasing it to meet that demand.”

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