The Old Colony Railroad (OC) was a major railroad system, mainly covering southeastern Massachusetts and parts of Rhode Island, which operated from 1845 to 1893. Old Colony trains ran from Boston to points such as Plymouth, Fall River, New Bedford, Newport, Providence, Fitchburg, Lowell and Cape Cod. For many years the Old Colony Railroad Company also operated steamboat and ferry lines, including those of the Fall River Line with express train service from Boston to its wharf in Fall River where passengers boarded luxury liners to New York City. The company also briefly operated a railroad line on Martha's Vineyard, as well as the freight-only Union Freight Railroad in Boston. From 1845 to 1893, the OC network grew extensively largely through a series of mergers and acquisitions with other established railroads, until it was itself acquired by the New York, New Haven and Hartford Railroad under lease agreement on March 1, 1893, for its entire 617-mile (993 km) network. Passenger service on the line ended in 1959, except for the main line between Boston and Providence, which continues to be used for passenger service by Amtrak and the MBTA. Since 1997, other former OC lines have been reopened to passenger service, including the MBTA's Old Colony Lines. Other parts of the former OC system continue to be used for freight service by CSX Transportation and other short line railroads. Parts of the former OC on Cape Cod are also still used to operate the Cape Cod Central Railroad, while Old Colony and Newport Scenic Railway operates on another part of the former OC. Several abandoned portions of the OC have been converted into multi-use rail trails. These include the East Bay Bike Path in Rhode Island, as well as others in Lowell, Mansfield, Fairhaven, and the Cape Cod Rail Trail on Cape Cod.
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