In the mid-1980s, Amtrak Northeast Corridor trains exited Boston via the MBTA Fairmount branch as the NEC mainline between Back Bay and Forest Hills was relocated from an embankment to an open cut. This Washington-bound train crossed the Southeast Expressway on the temporary routing as the John Hancock tower, Boston's tallest, loomed in the background.
Once treated like a backwater with decrepit locomotives, cars and track, Massachusetts has become a star in the Amtrak constellation with electrification to Boston, service to Maine and an upgraded Connecticut Valley line.
