springfieldunion. connecticut central railroad
connecticut central, new haven, penn central, conrail, boston and maine, guilford rail system, central new england

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Built to compete with the Hartford & New Haven's route between Hartford and Springfield, it was never a match for the river route. Chartered in 1971, the Connecticut Central Railroad was planned to connect Springfield to Portland, Connecticut, but was later changed to East Hartford, getting trackage rights on the Hartford, Providence & Fishkill Railroad into Hartford. Shortly before the rail line was completed, the Connecticut Valley Railroad leased the line in 1876, but shortly thereafter went bankrupt. The Connecticut Central Railroad became an independent operation until 1880, when it was leased to the New York & New England Railroad, offering competition to the New Haven, operator on the Hartford & New Haven line. The Connecticut Central never was a problem for the New Haven since the NY&NE only operated two round trips a day, and the length of the line was about seven miles longer than the New Haven's.

In 1898, the line came under the control of the New Haven Railroad. Passenger trains between Springfield and Hartford on this line ceased in 1928, which near the end was only one round trip a day. Passenger trains continued to run elsewhere on the line out of Hartford for a few more years.

In 1969, the New Haven Railroad was forced to merge into the Penn Central. Remaining segments of the line between Springfield and Hazardville, and East Hartford and East Windsor saw regular local freight service well into the Conrail years. In 1982, the Boston & Maine Railroad began to expand its system into Connecticut and purchased the Springfield-Hazardville section of the branch from Conrail. Guilford Transportation Industries purchased the B&M in 1983, and the railroad became Guilford Rail System and by 1993 Guilford abandoned its section of the line. The southern segment that Conrail still owned was shortened to South Windsor, and continues to see occasional service today, provided by the Central New England Railroad.

source: The Rail Lines of Southern New England by Ronald D. Karr

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