A predecessor to the Berkshire Hills Express, the Western Express, in the Berkshire Hills, circa 1910.
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BERKSHIRE HILLS EXPRESS
The Berkshire Hills Express was a full-service passenger train of the New York Central Railroad that went from New York City to North Adams, Massachusetts, in the Berkshires. It served as a channel for tourist travel from downstate New York, through the Taconic Mountains, to resorts and other attractions in the Berkshires and for students traveling to Williams College, 11 miles west of North Adams. The train operated from 1919 to 1934. However, it continued in unnamed form for nearly two decades longer.
Route
The train, carrying the number, No. 916, departing mid-afternoon, went in express fashion on the New York Central's Harlem Line, bypassing most stations between 125th Street Station and Chatham, New York. From Chatham, the train headed east on the territory of the Boston and Albany Railroad that the NYC had leased, to Pittsfield, and then headed north on the B&A's North Adams branch. The train took the name, New York Express and No. 911 on the southbound route to New York City. In addition to carrying coach cars it included a buffet car and parlor car as well.
Following the NYC's dropping of the Berkshire Hills Express and New York Express in 1934, the train continued as No. 1516 north and No. 5417 south. By this time a morning train took the route as well in both directions.
Demise
In 1950, the through service to North Adams was trimmed to a shuttle from Chatham to North Adams, requiring a transfer at Chatham. Passenger service between Chatham and North Adams ended in 1953.
Overview
Service type: Inter-city rail
Status: discontinued
Locale: Northeastern United States
First service: 1919
Last service: 1934
Former operators: New York Central Railroad & Boston & Albany Railroad
Route Termini: New York, New York / North Adams, Massachusetts
Distance traveled: 175.5 miles (282.4 km)
Service frequency: Daily (shortened on Sundays to Pittsfield)
Train numbers: 911 (southbound), 916 (northbound)
On-board services
Seating arrangements: Coach
Catering facilities: Buffet car
Observation facilities: Parlor car
Route
New York City–Grand Central Terminal
125th Street Station
White Plains
Brewster
Pawling
Dover Plains
Sharon Station
Millerton
Chatham
Canaan
State Line - New York / Massachusetts
Richmond
Pittsfield
Cheshire
Maple Grove
Adams
Renfrew
North Adams