Massachusetts
State Details
See Wikipedia; also see United States for information relating to the country as a whole, and the national operator Amtrak.
Maps
Massachusetts state is covered the SPV "North America Railroad Atlas" volume New England & Maritime Canada.
Rail Operators
Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority operates public transport services in the Boston city area, and also "Commuter Rail" main-line rail services extending considerably further from the city. Various website pages cover all transport modes:
- Trip Planner
- Schedules and Maps
- Alerts - lists both service disruptions and planned engineering works
MBTA Commuter Rail
Most lines are within Massachusetts; the Providence Line extends into Rhode Island, through Providence itself to Wickford Junction.
- Infrastructure: see national details. The Providence Line is electrified at 25kV 60Hz AC as part of the Northeast Corridor, but MBTA operates all trains with diesel power.
- Map: map page. The timetable pages for individual lines have interactive maps.
- Timetables: on the schedules page, follow the links for individual lines, then click the link under "PDF Schedules".
- Disruptions: the Alerts page
- Real-time Info: PantographApp is an unofficial real-time map derived from MBTA (and other operators') data. Use the filters to select the desired services.
Note that parts of some MBTA Commuter Rail routes are also used by Amtrak services.
CapeFlyer
CapeFlyer is a summer-only service operated by MBTA, between Boston and Hyannis (on Cape Cod). The service uses the Commuter Rail Middleborough/Lakeville line.
Tourist Lines
See Wikipedia
Metro and light rail systems
Boston
MBTA operates the "Subway" network, comprising both metro and light rail routes.
- Map: map page
- Timetables: schedules page
See also UrbanRail.
The Blue, Orange and Red Lines are metro services. The Green Line is a light rail service, with a mix of street-running, reserved right-of-way, and tunnel. The "Ashmont-Mattapan High-Speed Line" is a light rail service, operated with historic PCC vehicles.
Note: "Silver Line" routes are shown on the Subway map, but these are operated with dual-mode (diesel/electric) buses running partly on reserved routes.
Infrastructure
- Gauge: standard
- Electrification: 600V DC third rail (Blue Line (tunnel section), Orange Line, Red Line); 600V DC overhead (Blue Line (surface section), Green Line, Ashmont-Mattapan)
- Rule of the road: right
Obscure and Sparse Passenger Services
See PSUL: World Beyond Europe entries with 'MA' numbers - note that these entries are in the United States section, not the 'MA' numbers used for Morocco.
