By Railfan & Railroad Staff

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — Amtrak, the Massachusetts Department of Transportation, the New York State Department of Transportation and CSX Transportation have announced that the Berkshire Flyer, a new passenger train connecting New York City and Pittsfield, Mass., will begin operations on July 8. 

CSX and Amtrak agreed to run the train earlier this year when the Class I was lining up support for its pending takeover of Pan Am Railways. The train will run on summer weekends in 2022 and 2023, and if it proves popular could become a permanent fixture. 

“We are pleased to work together with our partner agencies to run passenger train service between Pittsfield and New York City on weekends during the busiest tourist times this summer,” said Gov. Charlie Baker.  “Western Massachusetts and the Berkshire Region offer a whole host of cultural and recreational opportunities during the summer and we hope this pilot service will encourage even more visitors to this part of our state.”

The Berkshire Flyer will depart from New York Penn Station at 3:16 p.m. on Fridays and arrive at Joseph Scelsi Intermodal Transportation Center, 1 Columbus Ave, Pittsfield at 7:12 p.m.  The train will make all the intermediate station stops as the typical Amtrak Empire Service train does on Fridays, which include Yonkers, Croton-Harmon, Poughkeepsie, Rhinecliff, Hudson and Albany-Rensselaer Station. The Sunday return trip, making all the same station stops, will depart Pittsfield at 3:00 p.m. and arrive in New York at 7:05 p.m.