F-Line to Dudley
Senior Member
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- Nov 2, 2010
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There sort of is. Railroads being federally regulated means a lot of the state and local permitting overhead for things done on the ROW are inapplicable. They don't really have to do outreach for things like restoring double-track to a double-track railbed, but of course it's bad politics not to do so and the T doesn't want some town's local reps getting sicced on them in some sort of Operation Chaos. I think they know that it's a futile gesture and that they're only going to get a bunch of screaming at clouds in return, but it'd be poor form to not go through the song-and-dance number.My hot take is that if the MBTA wants to restore a previously removed double/triple track anywhere within existing right of way there should be some kind of blanket exemption from permitting and outreach. The railroads predate most of what surrounds them and there are proven tangible environmental and societal benefits from added rail capacity.