Enfield Breaks Ground On New Train Station

ENFIELD, CT — Officials broke ground Wednesday on a new train station in Thompsonville, advancing a long-planned project to restore passenger rail service to Enfield for the first time since 1986.

U.S. Rep. Joe Courtney, Gov. Ned Lamont and state Transportation Commissioner Garrett Eucalitto joined other federal, state and local leaders for the groundbreaking, according to a news release from Courtney’s office.

The station will become a stop on the CTrail Hartford Line, connecting Enfield with Springfield, Hartford and New Haven. It is planned near Main Street and North River Street, at the historic site where passenger trains served the community from 1844 to 1986, according to the town’s station project page.

“For over fifteen years, my office has worked side-by-side with the Town of Enfield and the CT Department of Transportation to secure this economic priority for the town,” Courtney said in the release.

Plans call for a 350-foot elevated boarding platform, a waiting room, approximately 80 parking spaces, a dedicated bus lane and a passenger drop-off area. Work also includes rebuilding the railroad bridge over Main Street and adding an accessible sidewalk connection. The town anticipates completion in late 2029.

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Courtney said the station and nearby housing development could help bring more investment to Thompsonville.

“Now, with the housing and new construction surrounding the project’s groundbreaking, this is really the posterchild for transit-oriented development,” he said.

Nearby plans include 156 apartments at the former power plant property at 33 North River St., beside the future station. Patch previously reported on a $4 million state cleanup grant intended to help prepare that property. The apartment development also calls for a public riverwalk.

The station project will also involve closing the Asnuntuck Street underpass, a change the town says it has opposed. According to its project page, the town plans to work with the neighborhood to address the effects of that closure.

Funding includes a $13.86 million federal grant awarded in 2022 through the Consolidated Rail Infrastructure and Safety Improvements program, according to Courtney’s office. The state Department of Transportation’s funding overview also identifies the grant, rounded to $13.9 million, as supporting station and track construction in Enfield.

Courtney’s office said earlier funding included a $2.8 million fiscal year 2010 Intermodal Center Access Grant and a $2.5 million fiscal year 2022 Community Project grant.

“All of the work pulling together support from stakeholders and securing federal funding will lead to long-awaited connectivity and economic growth in Thompsonville,” Courtney said.

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