Boston to Worcester

30 minutes

Worcester to Springfield

30 minutes

Boston to Springfield

60 minutes

While there is ongoing discussion and study of an improved rail line between Boston and Springfield, none of the proposals are high speed. Of the six alternatives outlined in the 2019 East-West Rail Study Advisory Committee Meeting Notes - July 23, 2019, only one proposes a high speed. If is the average speed that is more important, not just the ability to hit a high speed. Any East\West Rail proposal must be a sustained highspeed intercity rail line with enough trains to make its use more attractive than the automobile.

The problem with the current proposals is that using the existing track rights of way will not support a sustained high-speed train.

Constructing an entirely new above-ground rail line is essentially impossible considering land taking and environmental costs, permitting and public opposition. Even the rail proposal adjacent to the Massachusetts Turnpike as suggested in Alternate Six is unrealistic.

The answer is to bypass these problems by constructing a pair of rail tunnels (Trans Mass Tunnels or TMT), one between Boston and Worcester (40 miles) and one between Worcester and Springfield (30 miles).