First new station on CTrail line opens in Wallingford
WALLINGFORD -- Federal, state and local officials held a grand opening Monday to celebrate the first new station to open along the CTrail Hartford Line.
The station, located at 343 N. Cherry Street, replaces the one at 37 Hall Ave. It will provide service to existing Amtrak trains until CTrail launches in May 2018. CTrail will feature increased commuter trips between New Haven, Hartford and Springfield.
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy said the new station "marks a major milestone in the evolution of much-needed service."
“Creation of the Hartford Line,” Malloy said, “will provide those working, living, and traveling along this corridor with fast, safe, and reliable rail transportation – providing greater attraction for businesses, stimulating job creation, and improving our overall quality of life.”
State Rep. Mary Mushinsky, D-Wallingford, said the new station will “open a new chapter in downtown Wallingford’s economic and residential growth and prosperity that will be felt for generations to come.”
“This station, and the myriad upgrades compared to our former stop, should bring positive benefits to the people of Wallingford, and those who can now easily and comfortably visit from other locations,” said State Rep. Craig Fishbein, R-Wallingford.
The new rail line will increase the number of round trips between New Haven and Hartford from six to 17, said John Bernick, DOT's assistant rail administrator. Amtrak will make nine round trips between New Haven and Hartford on weekdays, while CTrail will make eight round trips.
The Wallingford station is the first new station to open as part of the CTrail project. New stations in Meriden and Berlin are expected to open in the coming months. The Wallingford station cost about $21 million, Bernick said .
While the Wallingford station won't have bathrooms, it "features amenities aimed at providing a high-quality passenger experience, including high-level platforms, an overhead pedestrian bridge, overhead canopies, automatic snow melting systems, a passenger information display system, electric vehicle charging and bicycle racks," according to a DOT statement.
The station includes two parking areas with a total of 221 spots. The lots are accessible via North Colony Road and North Cherry Street. Parking fees are $2 per day or $20 per month. Parking will be free on weekends and federal holidays. Payment can be made with credit card, debit cards, and cash.
The former station on Hall Avenue will be used to house several organizations, including the Wallingford Adult Education Center and the New Haven Society of Model Engineers Railroad Club.
DOT released proposed fares for the CTrail Hartford Line last month and is now going through a public comment period. A one-way trip from Wallingford to New Haven would cost $3.50 under the proposed fare schedule. A trip from Meriden to New Haven would cost $4.75, while a trip from Meriden to Wallingford would cost $3. From Berlin, a trip to New Haven would cost $6.
Trips from Berlin to Wallingford and Meriden would cost $3.50 and $3, respectively. Hartford to New Haven one-way would cost $8. Springfield to New Haven would cost $12.75.
Hartford Leaders Weigh Proposals For Key North End Intersection
Plans are underway to remake the congested intersection of Main Street and Albany Avenue, with city officials eyeing proposals to widen lanes or even add a roundabout at the busy corner.
Hartford was recently awarded $3.7 million in state and federal funds to overhaul the intersection, a key gateway to the city that has long been plagued by traffic snarls. The addition of Dunkin’ Donuts Park, which opened in April less than a quarter mile from the crowded corner, has added to backups in the area. Workers in the city’s traffic division are weighing two proposals for the interchange — one that would widen lanes, shorten crosswalks and replace sidewalks and signals, and another, more extensive plan that would create a roundabout at the five-way junction. High and Ely streets join with Albany Avenue at the intersection, and Main Street runs through in two directions. Under the first plan, Albany Avenue would be widened slightly west of Main Street, and narrowed east of Main. New shoulders and shorter crosswalks would be built, and new signals installed. The proposal also calls for broken or deteriorating sidewalks to be replaced, and new bike lanes to be added.
Some of the roads would get curb extensions — also known as curb bulbs or bump-outs — and parking would be reconfigured in the new design.
The second, more costly plan involves a drastic redevelopment of the crossing, with the incorporation of a roundabout to help decrease speed and boost traffic flow in the area. That proposal also includes new bike lanes and street widening.
The roundabout, which features reduced speeds of 15 to 20 mph, would help prevent car crashes at the corner, proponents of the idea said.
There were nine collisions at or near the intersection in 2015, 15 crashes in 2016, and two by August of this year, according to data compiled by the state. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE
Those with crumbling foundations finally may get some help
Homeowners in eastern Connecticut with crumbling concrete foundations could receive state help to fund costly repairs soon.
The bipartisan budget passed by the state Senate and House last week allows $100 million in bonding over the next five years to assist homeowners with deteriorating foundations, alongside other aid programs.
For years, affected homeowners have clamored for help repairing or replacing foundations that are cracking. The foundations’ decay has been blamed on the presence of a mineral in the concrete aggregate called pyrrhotite, which corrodes when exposed to water. The mineral has been traced to a Willington quarry.
The issue has been “heartbreaking,” Rep. Jeff Currey, D-East Hartford, said Monday. The bill is a “fantastic step in the right direction” but not the “be all end all,” he added.
“The good news is there’s $20 million a year for remediation,” said Lyle Wray, executive director of the Capitol Region Council of Governments. “Obviously, homeowners are impatient and want to get going.”
The grassroots group Connecticut Coalition Against Crumbling Basements says on its website that the cost to replace a foundation in the state ranges from $150,000 to $250,000, an amount frequently not covered by insurance companies’ policies. More than 600 homeowners have filed complaints with the Department of Consumer Protection, and some 34,000 houses have been pegged as at risk of damage.Tony Frassinelli, first selectman of Stafford, said in a news release that the issue is a financial, mental and emotional “nightmare.”
“The ramifications could crush small towns all around the region and could last for 20 years or more,” he said in the release. “This legislation is a first step in helping us and our homeowners.”
Last week’s bill puts $40 million over the next biennium into a Crumbling Foundations Assistance Fund that will be administered by a not-for-profit “captive” insurance company. A captive insurance company typically is wholly owned and controlled by those covered by the insurance. This would minimize the legal risk to the state.
The captive will be overseen by a volunteer board of directors – including homeowners, a representative from the Capitol Region Council of Governments and several non-voting positions held by legislators.Once appointed, those board members will develop criteria for eligible homeowners, and determine if homeowners who already paid for foundation repairs can receive retroactive help, among other items. Currey said the disbursement of funds for remediation efforts could begin by next summer. CLICK TITLE TO CONTINUE