If you’re from New England you may have heard of the Berkshires. It’s the most rural mountainous region in western Massachusetts and is often the place where many go to get away during the summer for peace and relaxation. In the fall, people flock out here for leaf peeping. This area is also the summer home of the Boston Symphony Orchestra.
Lenox, Massachusetts is where you would find a typical New England train station, but this isn’t just an old train station. This is the home of the Berkshire Scenic Railway Museum (BSRM) founded in 1984. Like most railroad museums, it’s a non-profit organization working off donations and admission fees. From the time BSRM was founded, it provided scenic excursions between Lee and Great Barrington. In 1989, passenger operations were suspended due to poor track conditions. The right-of-way was owned by Housatonic Railroad. In 2003, excursion trains returned, providing service between Lenox, Lee and Stockbridge. BSRM hit another red signal in 2011 when Housatonic Railroad announced they wouldn’t be renewing their agreement with BSRM.
After nearly four years, BSRM is working to get its scenic excursion trains back on track. There has been a huge movement in Massachusetts and across America to bring passenger railroad service back. More millennials are parking the cars and making use of public transit. How does this tie into this Railroad Museum in Western Mass? The state of Massachusetts has been very active in purchasing railroad right-of-ways throughout the state. In February of 2015, the state of Massachusetts purchased 37 miles of the Housatonic Line between Canaan, CT and Pittsfield, MA. This opened up an opportunity for BSRM with the new ownership of the right-of-way. Since the purchase, work restoring a stretch of track between North Adams and Renfrew, MA, a little over 4 miles, has been underway. Local businesses want the freight service up and running and this will give BSRM safe rails to get trains running again. The goal is to be up and running by fall of 2015. BSRM will be running its Budd Rail Diesel Car to get things going at first. A Budd Rail Diesel Car is a self-propelled diesel rail car, it’s almost like a bus on track, and can fit anywhere from 48 to 94 passengers.
If you plan on visiting the Berkshires this summer or fall,make a point to stop by BSRM on a Saturday. You can take a short ride on a train in the yard and see some of the equipment, and if staffing allows you to, you can even board some of the equipment. Many of the volunteers have worked professionally for the railroad industry. This may not be the largest railroad museum in New England, but it shouldn’t be overlooked. I plan on revisiting them in the fall once they have the excursion service restored. – For updates on the excursion service
