Electric, regional rail would be “an absolute game changer,” says a rail expert, but even 2020 cost estimates top $40 billion.

Dan Zukowski | Smart Cities Dive

“The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority should convert its commuter rail system to a fully electrified, regional rail system, says a report issued June 1 by TransitMatters, a Boston-based group that advocates for improved public transportation in Massachusetts.

The MBTA serves eastern Massachusetts and Rhode Island on 12 commuter lines, operating diesel-powered trains from two main stations in the city of Boston: North Station and South Station. The TransitMatters report argues that ‘these diesel locomotives are expensive to maintain and produce black carbon emissions that contribute to greenhouse gas emissions and threaten public health.”’TransitMatters recommends replacing those trains with self-propelled electric trains, which it says will be faster and more reliable.

The report envisions regional rail as a system using electric-powered trains to provide ‘high all-day frequency, faster trip times, and cheaper fares’ than currently available. Trains would operate every 10 minutes, 24 hours a day, within the heart of Boston, with 15-or-30-minute frequencies further from the urban core, better serving low-income and environmental justice communities.”