Restoration planning (1980s–2003) The
Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority (MBTA) was formed in 1964 to subsidize suburban rail service and build rapid transit extensions. Contraction of the New Haven's Boston commuter service largely ended after 1967; expansion of service frequency and area began in the late 1970s. In the 1980s, the restoration of the lines to New Bedford and Fall River was proposed. Since the routes via Mansfield and Randolph and the Middleborough–Myricks segment of the Middleborough route were abandoned and built over, three possible routes to the South Coast were placed under consideration: the Stoughton route, a route following the Northeast Corridor to near and then branching onto the
Attleboro Secondary, and a route following the
Middleborough Main Line to Middleborough then the
Middleboro Secondary westwards. All three routes used the same lines from Taunton south to Fall River and New Bedford. By 1988, the MBTA was tentatively planning to extend service to Taunton via Stoughton. The first major study, completed in January 1990, concluded that the Stoughton Branch was the most viable route. The study was criticized for not considering other alternatives, including express buses. A May 1991 bond bill included $3million (equivalent to $million in ) for planning the extension. In 1991, the state agreed to build a set of transit projects as part of an agreement with the
Conservation Law Foundation (CLF), which had threatened a lawsuit over auto emissions from the Central Artery/Tunnel Project (
Big Dig). Among these projects was the "Old Colony Commuter Rail Line Extension", to be complete by the end of 1996. This included the
Middleborough/Lakeville Line and
Plymouth/Kingston Line, which opened in 1997, plus the 2007-opened
Greenbush Line. Planning for service to the South Coast continued. The March 1995
Expanded Feasibility Study analyzed routes absent from the 1990 report. The 1965–1980 construction of the Braintree Branch had only left space for a single track (intended for freight use) on the Old Colony mainline through parts of
Dorchester and
Quincy. This limited the capacity required for reaching the South Coast via Middleborough: service could be operated to one of Fall River and New Bedford, but not both. In August 1996, Governor
Bill Weld signed a bill giving $136million (equivalent to $million in ) to commuter rail expansion, while the state legislature directed the MBTA to further study alternatives. The 1997
Expanded Alternatives Analysis showed vastly increased costs — $407 million (equivalent to $million in ) via Attleboro, $410 million ($million) via Stoughton, or $436 million ($million) via Middleborough. Service via Middleborough would also require double-tracking on the Old Colony mainline at additional cost. The report recommended the Stoughton route as the most cost-effective due to its high ridership. A groundbreaking ceremony was held in October 1998 after a contract for bridge work in Fall River and New Bedford was awarded that month. Based on an analysis of South Station operations, the July 1999
Draft Environmental Impact Report concluded that the Stoughton route was the only viable route. It projected 4,325 daily riders with 20 trains per day to each of Fall River and New Bedford. In January 2000, following then-governor
Paul Cellucci's reapproval, the state reported that construction would begin in late 2002 and last until 2004. The Phase 1 Alternatives Analysis Report, released in April 2008, narrowed 65 options (including unlikely modes like
heavy rail metro and
monorail) to five plausible alternatives: the Attleboro, Stoughton, and Middleboro routes, a mixture of Attleboro and Middleboro service, and express bus service. The
Massachusetts Department of Transportation (MassDOT) released 18 potential station sites for the project in September 2008. In May 2008, MassDOT issued a formal request to the
US Army Corps of Engineers to allow discharge of fill materials into wetlands — effectively starting the formal environmental review process. The agreement was signed on September 23, 2009. On June 11, 2010, the state and CSX completed the first phase of the agreement, including the transfer of the South Coast Rail lines to MassDOT. In a May 2009 interview, Commonwealth Treasurer
Tim Cahill stated that "it is virtually going to be impossible" for the state to complete the project in 2016 as planned due to
the recession, adding that federal funding was unlikely to be obtained because "[t]he federal government doesn't trust us anymore because of the
Big Dig." The state released the
South Coast Rail Economic Development and Land Use Corridor Plan, which called for substantial
mixed-use transit-oriented development around stations, in June 2009. The Phase 2 Alternatives Analysis Report, which indicated electric or diesel service through Stoughton as the best choice, was released in September 2009. The Army Corps of Engineers released the Draft Environmental Impact Statement (DEIS) in March 2011. Concurring with previous documents it recommended that South Coast Rail be routed through Stoughton, citing in particular the need to add a billion-dollar fourth track from to to accommodate service through Attleboro. A state transportation funding bill passed in July 2013 mentioned South Coast Rail as deserving funding but did not specifically allocate money to the project. In September 2013, the Army Corps of Engineers released the Final Environmental Impact Statement. It made small changes to several station sites and selected locations for layover yards. The projected cost for electric service was revised slightly downward to $1.817 billion (equivalent to $billion in ). A spending bill passed in April 2014 allocated $2.3 billion (equivalent to $billion in ) for South Coast Rail. On June 18, 2014, MassDOT awarded a one-year, $12 million contract (equivalent to $million in ) – with up to $210 million (equivalent to $million in ) possible over 10 years – to a joint venture between
Vanasse Hangen Brustlin, Inc. and
HNTB for "program management, early design development, and environmental permitting".
Project changes (2016–2021) In June 2016, the MBTA announced that the project cost had been revised to $3.42 billion (equivalent to $billion in ), with completion not expected until 2030. The substantial delay and increase in cost caused officials to consider alternate plans, including an interim service to New Bedford via Middleborough. Some local and regional officials objected to that plan, as it would have reduced service to Middleborough/Lakeville station and potentially interfered with Plymouth/Kingston Line and Greenbush Line service. Design for the Stoughton route was 15% complete by that time. In March 2017, the state announced a revised plan intended to provide service sooner than 2030. The $1.1 billion Phase 1 (equivalent to $billion in ) would follow the Middleborough route and open in 2024; Phase 2 would follow the original route through Stoughton (including electrification) and open in 2029. By June 2017, the planned completion dates were changed to Phase 1 in 2022 and Phase 2 in 2030, with stations at and in Phase 1 rather than Phase 2 as proposed in March. The two-phase approach attracted criticism from several directions, including some of those who had previously advocated for the project as well as previous opponents. Stoughton, Easton, and Raynham officials continued their previous opposition to South Coast Rail. The
Draft Supplemental Environmental Impact Report (DSEIR) was released in January 2018. It determined that a new station would be built at to replace Middleborough/Lakeville, and that
East Taunton station would be built instead of Taunton station, as serving Middleborough/Lakeville or Taunton would require time-consuming reverse moves. Battleship Cove station was moved back to Phase 2. The 1,610 projected daily boardings at the non-Middleborough stations were 41% of the 3,960 projected for Phase 2, leading to criticisms from public officials about the cost effectiveness of the project. The
Final Supplemental Environmental Impact Report was released in April 2018. Design work and permitting were largely complete by March 2019. In April 2019, the state announced that a funding plan and
Army Corps of Engineers permits for the Phase 1 plan were in place and that the project would proceed "full speed ahead," with a target of late 2023 for revenue service. Projected cost was $1.047 billion (equivalent to $billion in ). A transportation bond bill that included $825 million (equivalent to $million in ) for Phase 1 was filed in July 2019 and passed in January 2021. == Phase 1 construction ==