Metro-North Railroad will be substituting buses for train service along the New Canaan Branch during off-peak hours for three weeks beginning Monday to allow for seasonal trimming of brush and branches along the railroad's right of way.

via Buses to be used on New Canaan line – StamfordAdvocate.

DANBURY — Bad for the economy. Bad for the environment. Bad for the hundreds of thousands of motorists who use Interstate 84 every day.

In short, according to Chamber of Commerce President Stephen A. Bull, there's nothing good to say about a proposal to return tolls to Connecticut's highways, even if it is coupled with a promised 50 percent reduction in the state's gasoline tax.

via Proposed toll bill may lack legislative, local support – NewsTimes.

BRISTOL – The state is picking up the pace on a $7.3 million plan to widen a congested part of the Farmington Avenue portion of Route 6.Mayor Art Ward said the funding is likely to be included in the state’s transportation plan for the fiscal year beginning in 2012.

via Gearing up to fix Route 6 – The Bristol Press.

Even if the busway is built, at an estimated cost of $570 million, the towns north and east of Waterbury lack the population density to warrant full-scale commuter-rail service. Moreover, the busway project, combined with the pointless Springfield-New Haven commuter-rail line, would impoverish the state of construction and operating money as well as exhaust potential for future transit grants.

via Scuttling a bad idea | The Republican-American.

NEW BRITAIN – Despite enduring its share of pain from the nationwide recession, the city is faring reasonably well compared with many other Connecticut communities, Mayor Timothy Stewart said in his annual state of the city speech Wednesday night.

via Mayor Lauds New Britain’s Stability – Courant.com.

From coast to coast, mass transit is under attack. Decreased ridership due to the economy and reduced state subsidies are leading to cuts in service and fare increases.

For us in Connecticut, New York’s MTA and its $800 million budget shortfall could affect our daily commute. The NY transit agency is holding public hearings on plans to cut bus and subway service, eliminate student discount fares and, yes, even target Metro-North service.

Starting this June, the MTA wants to shorten Metro-North trains (achieving a $2.8 million annual savings) and eliminate others (a $1.6 million savings). Targeted for cuts in Connecticut are two mid-day trains between Grand Central and New Haven, and a late night local from GCT to Stamford.

But neither of these cuts will happen, thanks to our Governor.

Continue reading Fare Hikes & Service Cuts — ‘Talking Transportation’ with Jim Cameron

As the riders rested outside the Capitol on Monday, House Speaker Chris Donovan and Rep. David McCluskey, D-West Hartford, pledged to bring legislators, state congressional members and Gov. M. Jodi Rell together to set strategy for landing the hundreds of millions of dollars in federal aid that will be needed to build a system for 110-mph trains linking Springfield and New Haven to Amtrak’s heavily traveled Boston-to- Washington corridor. The same system also would accommodate slower commuter trains making more frequent stops.

via Weekend Bicycle Trek Puts Spotlight On Hopes For High-Speed Rail – Courant.com.

For a related story:

HARTFORD — While many students are spending their Spring Breaks in Cancun or Palm Beach or other exotic locations, a dedicated group of ConnPIRG students are using their Spring Break to build support for the High-Speed Rail service between New Haven to Springfield, here in Connecticut.

via Students Lead “High Speed Rail Tour” Across Connecticut | TheHartfordGuardian.com.

A working group comprising representatives from Norwalk, Wilton, Ridgefield, Redding and Danbury has formed to explore the development of a multi-use trail for bicyclists, pedestrians and other users of non-motorized transportation.

The proposed trail, which would extend from Calf Pasture Beach in Norwalk through the Norwalk River valley to Danbury, would, where possible, incorporate existing trails in Norwalk, Ridgefield and Wilton.

via Group studies walk-bike trail linking Norwalk to Danbury | Ridgefield Press.

NEW BRITAIN – The long-awaited New Britain-Hartford Busway isn’t exactly stalled, but its movement toward completion is moving slowly. Although support for the plan appears to be geographical rather than political, officials on both sides are lining up on either side of the issue that crosses party lines.

via Busway making slow headway – The New Britain Herald.

HARTFORD – When federal officials handed out $600 million for transit projects across the nation today, Connecticut pulled in just $238,000.

Thirty-eight other states, the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico all landed more money than Connecticut, mostly to buy new buses, build bus garages and passenger shelters, and upgrade subway and light rail infrastructure.

via State Gets A Disappointing $238,000 In Federal Transit Funds – Courant.com.

Shore Line East expanded its service out of New London last week by adding a 5:58 a.m. train that returns at 6:13 p.m.

via Shore Line East expanded its service out of New London  | The Day.

Eliminating remaining chokepoints, improving safety, and maintaining local character are three of the top concerns people have about Route 7, but perhaps the overriding sentiment is, “We don’t want Route 7 to look like Route 1.”

via Yes to safety, no to sprawl: Route 7 study looks at overall vision for corridor in 2030 | Redding Pilot.

It sometimes appears that in government that certain agencies don’t talk to each other, much less know where they have common interests.

What prompts that comment is the widely publicized word there is a plan afloat to cut some trains that run between New Haven and Grand Central Terminal — two midday trains, to be exact.

This apparently is being proposed by the Metropolitan Transportation Authority as it tries to deal with its major budget shortfall. We agree that it’s a problem, but it’s New York’s problem, not Connecticut’s.

via Many possibilities for improving our transit options – The Hour.

In the continuing economic downturn, we need to look for investments that will yield the biggest bang for the buck. Investments in cycling, pedestrian and transit access infrastructure do just this. They come at very low costs but generate great benefits for the economy, environment and the public’s health. They also can be bid out incredibly fast, with no need for an environmental review process. This would put Connecticut’s building trade workers, which face 30% unemployment, to work immediately.

via TSTC Testimony at Connecticut General Assembly’s Joint Committee on Transportation.