Taking the Amtrak Downeaster from Boston North Station to Old Orchard Beach Maine. It would have been great, but they canceled the midday 11:25 am train so we had to drive. Still, enjoyed steamers, scallops, lobster, the big wide beach at low tide, the nightlife of singer songwriters and rides flying in the air. A fun carnival atmosphere stayed at the Beach Motel.
Our journey today on GoNOMAD explores the challenges of traveling from Boston to Old Orchard Beach, Maine, particularly when the cancellation of the midday train disrupted our plans to take the Amtrak Downeaster.
Instead of the anticipated train ride, we opted to drive, that, while practical, shifted our experience. Despite this setback, we found joy in the local cuisine, indulging in steamers, scallops, and lobster, and relished the expansive beach at low tide.
The vibrant nightlife, featuring talented singer-songwriters and thrilling old-time carnival rides, added to the excitement of our stay at the Beach Motel.
We also discuss the broader context of New England's rail service improvements and future developments, highlighting ongoing projects that aim to enhance train travel options in the region.
The story also details the proposed Lunatrain, a sleeper service between New York and Boston as well as the additional trains added to the Hartford Line between New Haven and Springfield MA and the newest commuter rail, from Boston South Station to New Bedford and Fall River MA.
Transcripts
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Today on Go Nomad, we're taking the trade domain More trains and more stops for New England's railroads.
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In:
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ng into Boston and taking the:
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k improvements meant that the:
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We decided to do the sensible yet less sexy things Drive.
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Sadly, it seems it's just not that easy to take the train instead of driving up to Maine.
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These disruptions were part of a massive tie replacement project.
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Over 130,000 railroad ties along 124 miles of track are being swapped out to keep the down Easter running for many more decades.
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Our cheap hotel in Oob, the Beach Hotel and Suites, was a seven minute walk from the Amtrak station.
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We could have walked there ready for a beach day.
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We even brought our big beach beach chairs.
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The location is the only thing I'd recommend about this small hotel, small rooms and no side tables, but an inexpensive way to enjoy the town of Old Orchard beach, which is always a hoot.
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Train service in New England is increasing, even in the Trump era.
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So far anyway.
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Plans are underway for an overnight train with sleeping cars from Boston to New York, similar to the sleepers that are becoming popular in Europe.
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In the fall.
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2026, Maine will add a new station building to its proud down Easter train service serving the small coastal village of Wells.
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Wells is undergoing an $11.8 million transformation as its Amtrak station, part of its broader $32 million Wells Improvement Project, gets improved and enlarged for the new year.
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The goal to allow simultaneous boarding and deboarding and to raise the platform to the height that's needed for Amtrak.
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passengers since its debut in:
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And there talk about expanding it to Rockport.
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Today the trains travel 145 miles from Boston's North Station to Brunswick, Maine.
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There are now eight daily trains on the route.
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from Dover, New Hampshire in:
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In the coastal cities of New Bedford and Fall River, Massachusetts, train fans are thrilled with their new daily commuter rail service to Boston south station.
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It took 20 years, $1.1 billion, but it's here.
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These double decker trains will travel the 37 mile route three times a day.
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And there's also frequent weekend trains.
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It's been 65 years since these towns were last served by train service.
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The trip from Boston down to New Bedford or fall river takes 90 minutes and a fare is $12.25 with seniors riding for just six bucks.
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If you're in the military, a police officer, or if you're blind, you can ride for free.
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A few months ago, the line was forced to use buses for some of the route due to employee issues and it made everybody look bad.
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But the French operator Keolis has been able to staff the trains on weekends so far this summer.
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Down south, the Hartford line is getting a $25 million boost and here's what's expected.
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They're adding an extra weekday round trip between New Haven and Hartford to fill in this pesky three hour midday gap.
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On weekends, some of the trains will extend to Windsor Lock station and a weekday train will now stretch from Windsor Locks to Springfield, Massachusetts.
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They're also ramping up customer service hours at Hartford Union Station.
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building on the funding from:
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This Flyer, this Valley Flyer has been a complete success, with ridership numbers increasing every year.
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This bodes well for keeping these and the above mentioned rail travel routes running for decades more as we catch up to the rest of the world with railroad transportation.
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Now let's take a big, big step forward to consider an audacious idea from Philadelphia's Mike Avena called the Luna train.
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Mr. Avena has some ambitious plans for fancy train travel.
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He's starting off by looking at routes between Boston and Washington, where Amtrak's already up and running.
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He's got an eye on building a brand new fleet of sleeping cars with horizontal full beds and small compartments.
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According to Mr. Ovena, Dreamstar, the sleeping car serviced in Europe that crosses the channel between England and France, is all about a luxury experience, really top notch stuff.
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We want to have it have wide appeal but still be affordable for folks.
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So it's got to be new, no old retrofits.
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He's also borrowing a page from Europe's Nightjet Mini Cabins, calling them a solid example of a budget friendly option.
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We want it to have a wide appeal but still be affordable for folks.
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And it's got to be new, no old retrofits.
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He's also borrowing a page from Europe's Nightjet Mini Cabins, calling them a solid example of budget friendly option.
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He's keen on the mini cabins that are perfect for solo travelers at a fair price.
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Travelers aren't stuck paying for two beds like they would in an Amtrak roomette for families and groups.
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He's cooking up bigger compartments that will be private.
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No sharing with strangers.
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Read more about these exciting new developments in rail travel on gonomad.com.