New Haven line ridership ticked up last year

Ridership on the New Haven commuter rail line ticked up to a record high last year, officials announced.

The line recorded 39.6 million passenger trips, up 1.6 percent from 2013.

The numbers were released Monday — the same day as a legislative hearing on Gov. Dannel P. Malloy’s bill that would authorize nearly $2.78 billion in bonding for transportation infrastructure over the next five years.

“With record high ridership, commuters in Connecticut are increasingly choosing to use public transportation, demonstrating that a modern and efficient transportation network is one of the key components of a competitive economic climate,” Malloy said in a statement. “The data only further emphasizes the reasons why we need to continue our efforts to improve infrastructure and operations so that we can provide residents with the best-in-class service they need to commute in their daily lives and reinvigorate communities.”

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Among other projects, Malloy has proposed constructing train stations up and down the New Haven-Hartford-Springfield Line and installing double-tracks that would allow commuter rail service to Springfield.