The East Junction Branch is a railroad line owned and operated by the Providence and Worcester Railroad

Providence and Worcester Railroad

The Providence and Worcester Railroad is a Class II railroad in the United States. The railroad connects from Gardner in central Massachusetts, south through its namesake cities of Worcester and Providence, Rhode Island, and west from Rhode Island through Connecticut and into New York City...

 in the U.S. state

U.S. state

A U.S. state is any one of the 50 federated states of the United States of America that share sovereignty with the federal government. Because of this shared sovereignty, an American is a citizen both of the federal entity and of his or her state of domicile. Four states use the official title of...

 of Rhode Island

Rhode Island

The state of Rhode Island and Providence Plantations, more commonly referred to as Rhode Island , is a state in the New England region of the United States. It is the smallest U.S. state by area...

 and by the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority

Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority

The Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority, often referred to as the MBTA or simply The T, is the public operator of most bus, subway, commuter rail and ferry systems in the greater Boston, Massachusetts, area. Officially a "body politic and corporate, and a political subdivision" of the...

 in Massachusetts

Massachusetts

The Commonwealth of Massachusetts is a state in the New England region of the northeastern United States of America. It is bordered by Rhode Island and Connecticut to the south, New York to the west, and Vermont and New Hampshire to the north; at its east lies the Atlantic Ocean. As of the 2010...

. The line runs from the P&W's East Providence Branch in East Providence, Rhode Island

East Providence, Rhode Island

East Providence is a city in Providence County, Rhode Island, United States. The population was 47,037 at the 2010 census, making it the fifth largest city in the state.-Geography:East Providence is located at ....

 northeast to Amtrak

Amtrak

The National Railroad Passenger Corporation, doing business as Amtrak , is a government-owned corporation that was organized on May 1, 1971, to provide intercity passenger train service in the United States. "Amtrak" is a portmanteau of the words "America" and "track". It is headquartered at Union...

's Shore Line (Northeast Corridor

Northeast Corridor

The Northeast Corridor is a fully electrified railway line owned primarily by Amtrak serving the Northeast megalopolis of the United States from Boston in the north, via New York to Washington, D.C. in the south, with branches serving other cities...

) at East Junction in Attleboro, Massachusetts

Attleboro, Massachusetts

Attleboro is a city in Bristol County, Massachusetts, United States and is immediately north of Pawtucket, Rhode Island. Once known as "The Jewelry Capital of the World" for its many jewelry manufacturers, Attleboro had a population of 42,068 at the 2000 census, and a population of 43,645 as of...

 along a former New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad

New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad

The New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad , was a railroad that operated in the northeast United States from 1872 to 1968 which served the states of Connecticut, New York, Rhode Island, and Massachusetts...

 line. In Massachusetts, CSX Transportation

CSX Transportation

CSX Transportation operates a Class I railroad in the United States known as the CSX Railroad. It is the main subsidiary of the CSX Corporation. The company is headquartered in Jacksonville, Florida, and owns approximately 21,000 route miles...

 operates local freight service via trackage rights

Trackage rights

Trackage rights , running rights or running powers is an agreement whereby a railway company has the right to run its trains on tracks owned by another railway company....

, which it also has on the Shore Line north towards Boston. The P&W has overhead trackage rights in Massachusetts over the East Junction Branch, Shore Line, and CSX's Middleboro Subdivision

Middleboro Subdivision

The Middleboro Subdivision is a railroad line owned by CSX Transportation in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. The line runs from Attleboro southeast to the beginning of the New Bedford Subdivision near Weir Village along a former New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad line...

, New Bedford Subdivision

New Bedford Subdivision

The New Bedford Subdivision is a railroad line owned by CSX Transportation in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. The line runs from the end of the Middleboro Subdivision near Weir Village south to New Bedford along a former New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad line...

, and Fall River Subdivision

Fall River Subdivision

The Fall River Subdivision is a railroad line previously owned by CSX Transportation in the U.S. state of Massachusetts. The line runs from the New Bedford Subdivision at Myricks south to Fall River along a former New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad line...

 to the state line in Fall River, to reach its line to Newport, Rhode Island

Newport, Rhode Island

Newport is a city on Aquidneck Island in Newport County, Rhode Island, United States, about south of Providence. Known as a New England summer resort and for the famous Newport Mansions, it is the home of Salve Regina University and Naval Station Newport which houses the United States Naval War...

.

History

The East Junction Branch is part of the original Boston and Providence Rail Road

Boston and Providence Rail Road

The Boston and Providence Railroad was an early US Railroad in New England, connecting Boston and Providence and is part of Amtrak's Northeast Corridor.-History:...

, opened in 1835. It became a branch in 1847 with the opening of the new line from East Junction to Providence. The B&P was leased by the Old Colony Railroad

Old Colony Railroad

The Old Colony Railroad was a major railroad system, mainly covering southeastern Massachusetts and parts of Rhode Island. It operated from 1845 to 1893. Old Colony trains ran from Boston to points such as Plymouth, Fall River, New Bedford, Newport, Providence, Fitchburg, Lowell and Cape Cod...

 in 1888, and the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad

New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad

The New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad , was a railroad that operated in the northeast United States from 1872 to 1968 which served the states of Connecticut, New York, Rhode Island, and Massachusetts...

 leased the Old Colony in 1893. It remained a New Haven line until 1969, when the New Haven was merged into Penn Central Transportation

Penn Central Transportation

The Penn Central Transportation Company, commonly abbreviated to Penn Central, was an American railroad company that operated from 1968 until 1976. It was created by the merger on February 1, 1968, of the Pennsylvania Railroad and the New York Central Railroad...

. The MBTA acquired the piece in Massachusetts on January 27, 1973, despite it not seeing any passenger service, and the P&W later acquired the Rhode Island portion from Conrail, which had taken over Penn Central's lines in 1976.