Shore Line East: What's New

Shore Line East Rail Service to Be Impacted By Amtrak Tie Replacement Project

Service and schedule changes begin July 13, 2009

The Connecticut Department of Transportation announced today that beginning Monday, July 13, 2009, Amtrak will begin a major railroad tie replacement project on their Northeast Corridor between New Haven and Old Saybrook affecting both Shore Line East and Amtrak intercity customers.

"The Department is committed to sharing relevant information about projects impacting our rail customers out to the public quickly and accurately," said Joseph F. Marie, Commissioner of the Department of Transportation.

The first construction segment, between Guilford and Old Saybrook, will last approximately eight weeks. "We've worked with Amtrak to minimize any inconvenience to our Shore Line East customers," said ConnDOT Rail Administrator Eugene Colonese. "In the long run, Connecticut commuters will benefit from the track work being done by Amtrak. However, there will some service and schedule changes affecting customers in the near term."

Below are the specific planned service modifications due to the Amtrak tie replacement project. Shore Line East customers are urged to check the service website at www.ShoreLineEast.com for the latest information. These changes will begin on July 13, 2009. New timetables will be available to the public by Friday, June 19th.

EASTBOUND SERVICE (from New Haven)

Afternoon and Evening

Substitute bus service will be provided for the 1:00 PM train to Old Saybrook. (Buses depart from New Haven - Union Station at 1:00 PM and make all stops to Old Saybrook.)
Substitute bus service will be provided for the Shore Line East train that operates on Friday only at 2:10 PM to Old Saybrook. (Buses depart from New Haven - Union Station at 2:10 PM and make all stops to Old Saybrook.)
Shore Line East train departing from New Haven - Union Station at 4:27 PM will make stops at State Street Station, Branford and Guilford. Passengers continuing on to Madison, Clinton, Westbrook and Old Saybrook will transfer to buses at the Guilford station.
Shore Line East train departing from New Haven - Union Station at 5:42 PM will make stops at State Street Station, Branford and Guilford, and then will wait at Guilford for approximately 15 minutes so that Amtrak trains can pass. Passengers continuing on to Madison, Clinton, Westbrook and Old Saybrook will have the option of transferring to buses at the Guilford station or waiting on board.
Shore Line East train departing from New Haven - Union Station at 6:38 PM will make stops at State Street Station, Branford and Guilford, and then will wait at Guilford for approximately 11 minutes so that Amtrak trains can pass. Passengers continuing on to Madison, Clinton, Westbrook and Old Saybrook will have the option of transferring to buses at the Guilford station or waiting on board.
Shore Line East train departing from New Haven - Union Station at 7:02 PM will make stops at State Street Station, Branford and Guilford. Passengers continuing on to Madison, Clinton, Westbrook and Old Saybrook will transfer to buses at the Guilford station.

WESTBOUND SERVICE (toward New Haven)

Morning

Shore Line East train will depart from Old Saybrook at 7:45 AM, 10 minutes earlier than the current schedule. This train will also depart 10 minutes earlier at Westbrook, Clinton, Madison, Guilford, Branford, and State Street Station.

Evening

Substitute bus service will be provided for Shore Line East train departing Old Saybrook at 2:00 PM and stopping in Guilford at 2:13 PM.
Substitute bus service will be provided for Shore Line East train which operates on Fridays only departing Old Saybrook at 3:05 PM and Guilford at 3:18 PM.

Shore Line East Schedules July 13, 2009:

For more information call 1-800-ALL RIDE (1-800-255-7433).

New Shore Line East Schedule - Effective: Sunday, May 3, 2009

WEEKDAY SCHEDULE CHANGES

The only change to the weekday schedule involves afternoon train #1656, which departs from New Haven's Union Station at 7:02 PM (two minutes later), arriving at all stations a few minutes later than the previous schedule.

WEEKEND & HOLIDAY SCHEDULE CHANGES

There are no changes to the weekend & holiday schedule.

Friday Only Trains To Start May 22nd

The Friday only trains will operate from May 22, 2009 through September 4, 2009, providing the following additional early afternoon departures:

Train # 1626 will depart from New Haven's Union Station at 2:10 PM and State Street Station at 2:12 PM
Train #1675 will depart from old Saybrook at 3:05 PM, stopping in Guilford at 3:18 PM and then traveling non-stop arriving at New Haven's Union Station at 3:45 PM

Weekend & Holiday Shore Line East Schedule In Effect On Memorial Day

SLE will be operating under the Weekend & Holiday schedule on Memorial Day, May 25, 2009.

Shore Line East To Operate Extended Weekend Schedule on Monday, February 16th - President's Day

For the upcoming President's Day holiday, Shore Line East will operate using a weekend schedule with some additional trains to meet needs of customers who will be commuting on President's Day.

This Extended Weekend Schedule provides two additional trains westbound (toward New Haven) in the morning and two additional trains eastbound (toward Old Saybrook) in the afternoon.

The additional trains are as follows:

Westbound:

Train 3609 departs from Old Saybrook at 5:55 AM
Train 3617 departs from Old Saybrook at 7:55 AM

For a complete westbound Weekend and Holiday timetable, click here.

Eastbound:

Train 3630 departs from New Haven's Union Station at 3:02 PM
Train 3638 departs from Old Saybrook at 5:02 PM

For a complete eastbound Weekend and Holiday timetable, click here.

For the New Haven Commuter Connection schedule connecting with the SLE Extended Holiday Schedule, click here.

Downtown Commuter Connection Route Changes

Effective: December 11, 2008:

CTTRANSIT Downtown Commuter Connection buses will be detoured and the following bus stops will be discontinued until further notice:

Sachem and Hillhouse Streets
Peabody Museum
Grove and Prospect Streets

The City of New Haven says the Prospect Street Bridge (at the corner of Prospect & Trumbull Streets) now has a weight restriction in place. As a result, buses can no longer operate over the bridge.

New Shore Line East Schedule – Effective: Sunday, October 5, 2008

WEEKDAY SCHEDULE CHANGES

WEEKDAY - MORNING SCHEDULE

There are no changes to the Shore Line East weekday morning schedule other than:

Train #1693 (departing from Old Saybrook at 7:55 PM) will arrive at New Haven’s Union Station at 8:55 PM - five minutes earlier than the previous schedule.
Please note that the connecting New Haven Line train (now train #1597) will depart from New Haven’s Union Station at 10:08 PM.
Some New Haven Line connecting trains have adjusted their schedules by 1-3 minutes. Please consult the Metro-North New Haven Line timetable.

WEEKDAY - AFTERNOON SCHEDULE

SLE train #1640 will depart from New Haven’s Union Station and arrive at all stations five minutes later than the previous schedule.
SLE train #1644 will depart from New Haven’s Union Station and arrive at all stations two minutes later than the previous schedule.
SLE train #1646 will arrive at New London at 7:43 PM - five minutes earlier than the previous schedule. Other arrival/departure times for this train remain the same.
SLE train #1656 will depart from New Haven’s Union Station at 7 PM (three minutes later), arriving at all stations a few minutes later than the previous schedule.
Some New Haven Line connecting trains have adjusted their schedules by 1-3 minutes. Please consult the Metro-North New Haven Line timetable.

WEEKEND & HOLIDAY SCHEDULE CHANGES

WEEKEND & HOLIDAY - AFTERNOON SCHEDULE TO NEW HAVEN

SLE train #3645 will depart from Old Saybrook at 3:07 PM - seven minutes later than the previous schedule.
SLE train #3661 will depart from Old Saybrook at 7:07 PM - seven minutes later than the previous schedule.
SLE train #36473 will depart from Old Saybrook at 9:07 PM - seven minutes later than the previous schedule.

New Madison Train Station Opened Monday, July 28, 2008

The new station is located a short distance to the west of the old boarding platform. The Connecticut Department of Transportation (ConnDOT) constructed the new Madison train station to replace the older existing platform deck as part of a $25 million effort by the Department to improve operations and enhance safety on Shore Line East.

Madison Train Station

The new station will offer improvements such as a high-level platform on the south side of the tracks to allow for level train boarding, a commuter shelter, increased handicapped accessibility, a convenient commuter drop off area, bike racks and enhanced lighting. A total of 199 free paved parking spaces will be available, an increase of 35 spaces over the current parking lot.

Madison is the fourth of five new Shore Line East stations to be completed. New stations were opened in 2005 at Branford, Guilford and Clinton. Westbrook is currently under design.

New Weekend & Holiday Service from Old Saybrook to New Haven Now Operating Year-Round on Shore Line East

New Late Night Train Leaving New Haven at 10:05 P.M. Every Day

The Connecticut Department of Transportation (Department) began weekend and holiday rail service on Shore Line East (SLE) Friday, the 4th of July and throughout the weekend.

The initial weekend rail schedule includes four westbound trains to New Haven from early morning to early afternoon, and five east bound trains from mid-afternoon to late evening.

SLE will operate year-round weekend service between New haven's Union Station and Old Saybrook. The weekend service provides a full compliment of trains in each direction, more than the initial holiday weekend service in 2007.

Weekend rail service includes:

More frequent trains stopping in Old Saybrook, Guilford, State Street and Union Stations in New Haven throughout the day.
Branford Station will have only three westbound trains to New Haven due to scheduling limitation. The last morning train westbound departing from Branford to New Haven at 11:24 a.m.
Late evening train to operate every day from Union Station in New Haven departing at 10:05 p.m. The new service will allow customers to depart from New York's Grand Central Terminal (GCT) at 8:07 p.m. to connect in New Haven at 10:05 p.m.
Children under 12 will ride free with a fare-paying adult on Shore Line East. Reduce fares for children apply to New Haven Line.
Parking is free at all Shore Line East stations. Union Station, New Haven garage is fee parking.
Additional rail service is available on the New Haven Line to locations west of New Haven. Train schedules and ticket information can be located at www.mta.info
Tickets can be purchased on Shore Line East through the following options:

One-Way tickets are sold on board trains and are available at the New Haven, Old Saybrook and New London Amtrak ticket windows.

NOTE: If you purchase a Shore Line East ticket through conductor on westbound train, you may purchase a one-way New Haven Line ticket from the conductor at no additional charge. A return ticket must be purchased at your destination before you board the train, otherwise on-board purchase fee will apply.

Ten-Trip tickets are only sold at the New Haven, Old Saybrook and New London Amtrak ticket windows and are valid for nontransferable use by the named and signed passenger for 90 days.

Monthly tickets are sold by mail, phone, web and are available at the New Haven, Old Saybrook and New London Amtrak ticket windows. Ticket information is available through www.shorelineeast.com or by calling 203-777-7433 or (800) ALL-RIDE.

UniRail tickets combines Shore Line East and New Haven Line rail fares into one convenient ticket (one-way, weekly, monthly) is available at Metro-North ticket window and ticket vending machines. Only monthly Unirail tickets are available through the web or mail in. Ticket information is available through www.mta.info or at 1-800-METRO-INFO or in NYC at 212-532-4900.

"We are pleased to kick off the summer holiday by introducing year-round train service on Shore Line East," said Commissioner Joseph F. Marie. "During the holiday season, we saw that weekend rail service was a viable, workable option. With more trains being added to run expanded weekend service, the public will have more choices available to take advantage of rail service in Connecticut."

Consult the timetable for the Shore Line East at www.shorelineeast.com, or call 800-ALL-RIDE for schedule details including new weekend service. Weekend train schedules will also be published in regional newspapers ads.

Shore Line East trains are owned and operated by ConnDOT, under contract with Amtrak, to provide daily rail operations. SLE commuter operations began in 1990, serving seven stations along the 33-mile segment of Amtrak's Northeast Corridor between New Haven and Old Saybrook. The service was extended to New London in 1996. SLE provides more than 2,100 passenger trips each day, with nearly 484,000 trips in 2007.

To read Governor Rell's announcement, click here.

ATTENTION OLD SAYBROOK AND NEW LONDON CUSTOMERS: Select Amtrak Trains Cross-Honor Shore Line East Multi-Ride Tickets

Effective April 14, 2008, select Amtrak trains now honor valid Shore Line East (SLE) monthly, weekly and 10-trip multi-ride tickets.

SLE multi-ride tickets must be purchased prior to boarding Amtrak trains. Only SLE Old Saybrook and New London multi-ride tickets will be accepted on-board select Amtrak trains Monday through Friday only (excluding holidays). A combination of tickets will not be accepted.

SLE customers must show their valid SLE multi-ride ticket to the Amtrak Conductor each time they travel.

To find out more about the schedules of the select Amtrak trains, click here.
To view the Shore Line East timetable, click here.

Governor Rell Applauds Improved Shore Line East Customer Satisfaction Responses

Governor M. Jodi Rell today applauded the higher satisfaction ratings given to Shore Line East (SLE) by rail commuters in a new survey and said the rail service east of New Haven is an important component of her effort to reduce traffic congestion and improve mobility in southeastern Connecticut.

Click here to read the full press release...

Shore Line East Passenger Regulations

Pets & Animals
Trained service animals accompanying passengers with disabilities are the only animals permitted on SLE trains. Trained service animals must be kept under the control of their owners at all times.

Children
Children aged 2 through 15 receive a 50% discount when accompanied by one person paying an adult rail fare. Children under age 2 are permitted to travel free.

Bicycles
Bicycles are allowed on SLE trains but must have the front tire removed. Passengers must safely carry their bikes on and off board, and safely store the bicycle onboard the SLE trains.