The Fall River Subdivision is a railroad line in the U.S. state of Massachusetts owned by the Massachusetts Bay Transit Authority, with freight operations handled by the Massachusetts Coastal Railroad; it was formerly owned and operated by CSX Transportation. The line runs from the New Bedford Subdivision at Myricks (in Berkley) south to Fall River along a former New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad line. At its south end, at the Rhode Island state line in Fall River, it becomes a line of the Providence and Worcester Railroad.
History
The Fall River Branch Railroad completed the line from Myricks south to Fall River in 1845. The Old Colony and Newport Railway extended the line to Newport, Rhode Island in 1864. The line later became part of the NYNH&H and Conrail through leases, mergers, and takeovers; the part in Massachusetts was assigned to CSX in the 1999 breakup of Conrail.
In 2010 the state purchased the track from CSX for $21 million, along with sections of track in nearby New Bedford and Dartmouth for the proposed South Coast Rail commuter rail project. CSX also sold freight rights to the Massachusetts Coastal Railroad in the transaction.
The line is currently used primarily to transport chemicals to Borden & Remington in Fall River.