Complete Regional Transportation Plan 2012 - Cape Cod ...

2.4 RAIL TRANSPORTATIONRail Transportation on Cape Cod has a history of over 150 years. Currently, there are53.8 miles of track on Cape Cod, with different segments owned by the MassachusettsDepartment of Transportation and federal agencies.2.4.1 HISTORY OF RAILROADS ON CAPE CODIn 1848, the first railroad tracks on Cape Cod were laid from Middleboro to Sandwich bythe Cape Cod Branch Railroad. After tracks were built as far as Hyannis andYarmouthport in 1854, the Cape Cod Branch Railroad became the Cape Cod Railroad. In1865, railroad tracks were built from Yarmouthport to Orleans. These tracks wereacquired by the Cape Cod Railroad three years later. As rail service increased during themid-1800s, sailing packets and stage coaches became less numerous. Tracks reachedWoods Hole and Provincetown in 1872 as Cape Cod Railroad merged with Old Colonyand Newport to become the OldColony Railroad. The Harwichand Chatham Spur, which wasthe final segment of rail trackbuilt on Cape Cod, was completedin 1887. The Old Colony Railroadwas leased to New York, NewHaven, and Hartford Railroad in1894. In 1910, the Buzzards BayRailroad Bridge was completedover the first Cape Cod Canal,which was under construction.After the canal was widened in1933-35, a new railroad bridgewas constructed. At the time, theFIGURE 1 - EXISTING RAILROAD BRIDGE SPANNINGTHE CANALvertical lift railroad bridge wasthe longest of its kind in theworld.After a century of expansion, rail on Cape Cod saw a dramatic decline. The introductionof the automobile, a poor economy, and war led to the decline of rail service on CapeCod. Regular passenger service to Provincetown was suspended in 1938. Then, between1950 and 1959, the Mid-Cape Highway was constructed between Sagamore and Orleans.The Mid-Cape Highway allowed automobiles greater access to the Cape than before, andgreater competition with rail services. In 1957, rail service to Woods hole wasdiscontinued. Two years later, decreased ridership put an end to year round passengerrail service on Cape Cod. Freight trains continued service until the mid-1960s. Cape Codrailroad tracks were traded to the bankrupt Penn Central in 1969 and purchased by theCape Cod Regional Transportation Plan | August 2011Chapter 2.4: RailPage 165