South Coast Rail: 5 Things That Surprised Us

Today was a big day for the SouthCoast. The naysayers who have long been skeptical about South Coast Rail finally had to admit it really happened Monday morning.

Passenger trains truly pulled out of New Bedford and brought commuters up to Boston for the first time in over 65 years.

It was even hard to believe as we stood on the platform at the Whale’s Tooth parking lot. Reality only set in when the train blew its horn as it approached us on the tracks.

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There were a few things that surprised us about the experience. Here are five of them.

How Smooth the Ride Was

I couldn’t get over how smooth the ride was. We were doing our morning radio broadcast, but had we not mentioned we were on a train, you would have never known. The train simply didn’t have that loud rumble or the clickety-clack on the tracks.

Amenities

I hadn’t really thought about it, but I was a little surprised to see that the commuter trains had restrooms. That is a nice feature, especially on a train that you’ll be riding for 90 or more minutes. I can’t report on the cleanliness, but I’d imagine it was pretty clean – especially on day one when the train was packed members of the media.

I was also pleasantly surprised by the generous heat that was blowing during the chilly morning.

READ MORE: South Coast Rail Service (Finally) Launches in New Bedford

No Food or Drinks

We were really surprised not to see any catering available on the commuter rail. I’ve taken the Amtrak from Providence to New York City before and enjoyed buying a sandwich and soda from the catering car. You can’t tell me Dunkin’ wouldn’t be crushing it if they opened up a kiosk in one of the cars.

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South Station

I haven’t had a reason to go to South Station since I was in high school. If you haven’t been there in a while, you’re not missing much.

The station is filthy, and I felt like I needed to take a hot shower after we left. This surprised me. I realize we’re talking about the biggest train station in a major American city, but I just didn’t expect South Station to be quite so gross.

I was nervous about eating the breakfast sandwich I bought because I couldn’t imagine the number of germs on my hands.

READ MORE: The Complete South Coast Rail Schedule

Crowded Trains

I was pleasantly surprised to see the number of people taking advantage of the new commuter rail. We got on the train pretty early, but there was a surprisingly large number of passengers who joined us.

As the stops went by, we eventually reached standing-room-only capacity.

If today is any indication, I think New Bedford and Fall River commuter rail use may exceed expectations.