Stories

Author Porter Fox in the Boundary Waters. Photo by Sara Fox

Traveling Along America’s ‘Forgotten Border’

September 28, 2018

The northern border, and the unique landscape of the Northern United States that surrounds the border, is the subject of Porter Fox’s new book: Northland: A 4,000-Mile Journey Along America’s Forgotten Border. In it, Fox details his own travels along our Northern border, a trip he made on foot, by boat and by car along the winding, often remote, U.S.-Canada border, starting in the state where he grew up, Maine.

Read More
Oysterman Jay Fairty's radioed a morning call to raise the Ferry Street Bridge (seen in the distance). Fairty said the Quinnipiac River was good for business. "There's no better spot for oystering," Fairty said. "A lot of it's the water quality. The salinity. The food supply, everything is good here." Photo by Ryan Caron King for Connecticut Public Radio

Marking Time On The Quinnipiac River: One Bridge Opening At A Time

August 28, 2018

When a boat needs to pass under a low bridge on a river, that bridge needs to move out of the way. A drawbridge lifts up so a boat can pass under. A swing bridge pivots out of the way so a boat can pass by. But these decades-old bridges don’t operate on their own. They rely on a small group of “bridge tenders” who specialize in a peculiar and slow-moving job.

Read More
June 15, 2018 Border Patrol Checkpoint on I-93 in New Hampshire. Photo by Jason Moon for NHPR

Family Vacationing In N.H. Reeling After Arrest At Checkpoint 90 Miles From The Border

July 6, 2018

Under a Department of Justice rule, the Border Patrol is allowed to conduct these checkpoints 100 miles from a border, and they have been since 1953. What’s harder to know is whether or not these checkpoints are happening more frequently.

Read More
CTrail's new Hartford Line, which will carry passengers between New Haven and Springfield, will begin service on June 16. Photo by CTRail

Hartford Rail Line Revives ‘Gateway To New England’

June 13, 2018

This week the new Hartford Line commuter rail will link Springfield, Massachusetts, to New Haven, Connecticut, and cities in between. For less than $16, commuters can catch more than 12 trains each day and travel speeds up to 110 miles an hour.

Read More
A 2015 photo of the vessel Martha's Vineyard. The ship lost power the night of Saturday, March 17, 2018, but the cause is still under investigation. Photo by Sharon Brody for WBUR

Facing Rider Fury, Steamship Authority To Undergo Top-To-Bottom Audit

May 16, 2018

After hundreds of ferry cancellations this year alone, the Steamship Authority has announced it’s planning to hire an outside firm to audit its entire operation.

Read More

Projects Hoping To Bring Clean Power To Massachusetts, Compete For Vermonters’ Support

January 25, 2018

On Thursday, Massachusetts will select bidders to supply thousands of megawatts of renewable, carbon-free electricity. Two of the competing proposals call for new power line infrastructure through Vermont in order to bring energy south from Canada into the Bay State.

 

Read More

Steeped In History, Majestic J Class Boats Return To Newport

August 25, 2017

This week, Newport is hosting a first in the sailing world: the J Class world championships. J Class yachts are rare, and they’re huge.

 

Read More

Crucial, Century-Old, And Sometimes Stuck: Connecticut Bridge Is Key To Northeast Corridor

August 15, 2017

Every day nearly a million commuters travel on the Northeast Corridor — the vast rail network between Washington, D.C. and Boston.

Many of those passengers cross over a small river in the coastal city of Norwalk, Connecticut. But the only way for a train to get across that river is on the Walk Bridge — a 120-year-old “swing bridge.”

 

Read More

In Connecticut And Rhode Island, Federal Rail Decision Seen As Win For Preservationists

July 19, 2017

Residents in Connecticut and Rhode Island’s coastal communities are cheering the Federal Railroad Administration’s decision to back away from a controversial rail plan that would have re-routed a section of the Northeast Corridor through historic towns and important ecosystems along New England’s southern coast.

Read More

High Tensions In New London, Connecticut Over Federal Rail Plans

May 30, 2017

Communities along Connecticut’s southeastern shore want faster, reliable train service to Washington, D.C, New York, and Boston — but not if it skips their local train stations. A proposed federal plan for high speed rail would do just that.

Read More