CT officials plan cuts to Metro-North’s New Haven Line schedule

Just three days later, however, the number of people boarding Friday trains dropped by 17 percent — to 84,255 — a reflection of what transit officials have described as an uneven rebound from the pandemic. 

In a bow to the reality reflected by ridership figures, Connecticut lawmakers this month voted to impose temporary service cuts that could impact dozens of daily trains along the New Haven Line — with even more drastic cuts in store for the lesser-used Shore Line East route in the southeastern corner of the state. 

The cuts, proposed as part of Gov. Ned Lamont’s tax-cutting budget package, are set to come even as the state has announced plans to spend hundreds of millions of dollars on track improvements and infrastructure projects along commuter and intercity rail lines — a decision that has left some advocates puzzled about the state’s strategy for boosting its rail networks.

“There is certainly an irony,” with the timing of the service cuts, said Jim Gildea, the chair of the Connecticut Commuter Rail Council. “It underscores a real need for a long-term vision for the New Haven Line.”

In order to implement the cuts while minimizing the long-term impact on riders, Connecticut Department of Transportation Commissioner Garrett Eucalitto said that his staff is working hand-in-hand with their counterparts in New York to pinpoint specific days and times when ridership is at its weakest, with Friday and Monday service currently seen as prime candidates for cuts.

Reducing the number of trains that run on those days — while leaving mid-week service mostly intact — would represent a major shift for the four-decade-old railroad, which has traditionally operated on a weekend and weekday schedule. 

“It would be a complete break from precedent,” Eucalitto acknowledged in an interview with CTInsider on Thursday, while adding his belief that transit officials must adjust their thinking to adapt to the changes brought about by the pandemic. 

“I would say [with] 100 percent certainty that what we come out with will be something that we’ve never seen before,” he said. “It’s going to try to reflect the new reality of a post-peak pandemic world where we have a lot more telework occurring on certain days of the week.”

A schedule reflecting the proposed service cuts could be unveiled within the next month, Eucalitto said, with the hope of putting the changes into effect around Columbus Day. 

Advocates for Connecticut’s commuter rail lines have continued to criticize the approach taken by Lamont’s administration in paring back services as a reaction to the sluggish return of riders. 

While Lamont’s initial budget request included service cuts in each of the next two years, push-back from lawmakers ultimately resulted in funding for the New Haven line being fully restored starting in 2024. The one-year reduction in service is expected to save the state a total of $39 million. 

“Why, if you have killed the railroad, would you then restore full funding?” asked Jim Cameron, president of the Commuter Action Group, which advocates for mass transit. “I assume they think that ridership is going to come back in the next year and then they can restore service to handle it. But if they reduce service, ridership is not going to come back, in fact they may lose more riders.”

Cameron said that it would have made more sense to keep rail service in Connecticut operating fully at existing levels for the first year of the budget, while planning for cuts in the second year if ridership remains low. 

At New Haven’s Union Station early Friday morning, a young rider who gave his name as Nick S. exemplified the fears raised by rail advocates.

A resident of South Windsor, Nick said he travels into the city for work several times a year — a schedule that hasn’t shifted much since before the pandemic — and takes advantage of the greater number of trains that can fit his schedule on weekdays. 

Should his options be limited, however, Nick said he would begin to look at other means of travel. “If I have to wake up earlier, I may just choose to sit in traffic,” he said. 

The Association of Commuter Rail Employees, a union representing Metro-North workers, lobbied against the proposed cuts before they were included in the final budget package. Ed Valente, the general chairman of the union, said he is still planning to meet with MTA and ConnDOT officials to urge them to come up with other alternatives to cutting service. 

“I don’t even think that not changing course is an option,” Valente said this week. “With the ridership numbers the way they are, and with the trains the way they are, the cuts just can’t happen… it’s not something that’s plausible.”

During the budget negotiations, Valente warned that the level of funding being proposed by Lamont and ConnDOT could force officials to cut more than 40 daily trains running between Connecticut and New York City. Eucalitto said this week that the actual number of trains removed from service could be lower, as officials seek savings in other areas such as administrative costs. 

Another potential route for avoiding service cuts is one that is also likely to rile commuters: increasing fares. 

In New York, riders are already facing the prospect of increased fares for the MTA-operated commuter rail lines in Long Island and the northern suburbs. ConnDOT, which sets fares for riders in Connecticut, has historically followed suit in matching the MTA’s price hikes.

“If there’s a possibility of doing a similar fare increase, and thereby not reducing service as significantly, that’s definitely on the table and something that we’re looking at as an option, along with other administrative budgetary savings,” Eucalitto said this week. 

Officials in New York have pledged to avoid any impact on commuters in their state as a result of service cuts along the Connecticut portions of the line. 

The Metropolitan Transportation Authority develops the schedule and operates all of the trains that run along the 72-mile route, though services in Connecticut are funded by ConnDOT. Complicating matters is the fact that many trains — particularly those originating from or ending in Stamford — make numerous stops in New York. 

“Metro-North is working collaboratively with the Connecticut Department of Transportation to identify alternatives that will minimize impacts to customers,” MTA spokesman Aaron Donovan said in an email this week. 

Eucalitto said the MTA has a number of options for minimizing the impact of service cuts, including originating more trains in Westchester County. 

Once the MTA publishes its proposed schedule, officials will be required to host a number of public hearings to solicit feedback from riders before putting the final schedule in place this fall. Those who have continued to urge officials consider other alternatives, meanwhile, argue that it will be a similarly time-consuming process to reverse course once trains and their crews are taken off services. 

“You can’t just add service back with the snap of a finger,” Valente said. “It’s something if you go into it, you’re in it, you’re not just going to snap your fingers and get out of it.”