Commuter rail service between Boston and Providence will extend south to Warwick, R.I., this year, Rhode Island Gov. Donald Carcieri announced last week.
The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, in partnership with the Rhode Island Department of Transportation, has provided service between Boston and Providence since 1988 with a rail service known as the Pilgrim Partnership.
Under an agreement finalized and signed last week, the commuter rail service will add six daily stops at the T.F. Green station, which serves an airport. Service is slated to expand farther south next year when the Wickford Junction Train Station in North Kingstown opens.
The new station, 20 miles south of Providence, will have 10 daily stops when completed.
The Pilgrim Partnership serves approximately 1,200 riders from Providence per day.
“For nearly eight years, my administration has worked closely with the MBTA, Amtrak, and the Providence and Worcester Railroad to fulfill our shared vision for this innovative, 21st century transportation project,” Carcieri said in a press release.
“Extending commuter rail to Warwick, and later to Wickford Junction, and the improvements we’ve made at T.F. Green Airport will have far-reaching positive impacts upon improving our transportation system and fueling our economy,” he said.
Federal funding was first secured in 1998 for the $267 million InterLink project, which connects T.F. Green Airport to parking facilities and the commuter rail. RIDOT reported last month that the project was 87% complete.
In August, Rhode Island officials broke ground on the Wickford Junction station, which received a $4.4 million grant under the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act.
RIDOT plans to eventually extend the commuter line another 24 miles to the southern edge of the state at Westerly.
