MassDOT Says No to Overnight Layover Ban at Foxborough Train Station

FOXBOROUGH, MA — If train service in Foxborough becomes permanent, there will a layover station for the overnight storage of trains, a letter from a Massachusetts Department of Transportation official said.

In a letter dated Dec. 20, MassDOT Rail and Transit Administrator Astrid Glynn told Town Manager Bill Keegan that the layover station is an essential part of permanent service in Foxborough. She wrote that while a layover is not planned for the pilot program, layover capacity is at the end of nearly all commuter rail lines, according to the letter

Keegan and Selectmen Chairman David Feldman declined to comment on the letter until the board's Jan. 10 meeting. Selectman Ginny Coppola, the only board member to vote against the pilot program, referred to the program as disingenuous and called for a new vote because the MBTA will not abide by the town's conditions, according to the Sun Chronicle.

In November, the board voted 4-1 to support the program on the condition that there's no overnight storage of trains, no at-grade crossings, evaluations 6 and 10 months into the pilot, and the creation of an oversight committee for the pilot program.

The proposed train service would offer 4 round trips from Gillette Stadium in Foxborough to South Station in Boston, taking riders through Walpole and into Boston on the Fairmount Line.

The MBTA's Fiscal and Management Control Board is schedueld to consider the proposal in Janurary, according to the letter.

Image: File photo