Yesterday, MassDOT announced a plan to swap land at Lechmere Station with land near North Station.  While this sounds great for those in Medford and Somerville — since this would mean that the Green Line extension is officially on — it also means something for Worcester residents:

• “The move means the state can begin work to bring some Worcester Line commuter-rail trains into North Station via tracks in Cambridge and a bridge over the Charles River by Boston University.” (via UniversalHub)
• “Trackage rights off the Worcester Main Line to allow potential future passenger service from Worcester to Ayer.  This will provide a connection between the Worcester and Fitchburg Commuter Rail Lines, and a potential future connection to North Station.” (via MassDOT)

Also on the Commonwealth Conversations: Transportation blog is a piece by Lt Gov. Murray on improving commuter rail service. 

(Image: MBTA 010 @ Ayer MA, a Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs 2.0 image from matthrono’s photostream.)