Mayoral hopefuls back more rail

Three candidates sign pledge to lobby for more Shore Line East trains

New London - Three mayoral candidates stood before a throng of people inside Union Station Saturday morning and sealed their pledge with a signature to lobby, if elected, for increased commuter train service.

The event was a kickoff to a busy final 72 hours as the candidates make one final push to shore up votes for Tuesday's historic vote.

Members of the One More Stop coalition, political candidates and curious bystanders waiting for their train watched as Democrat Daryl Justin Finizio, petitioning candidate Andrew Lockwood and Republican Rob Pero - in alphabetical order - put their John Hancock on a pledge to "call on" Gov. Dannel P. Malloy and the state Department of Transportation to increase weekend Shore Line East trains to New London.

Write-in mayoral candidate Michael Buscetto III and petitioning candidates Lori Hopkins-Cavanagh and Martin T. Olsen Jr. were invited but did not attend.

Before resuming the campaign trail, the attending candidates spoke of their support of the Shore Line East extension, which all agreed would be an important part in expanding New London's tourist base.

Currently, five Shore Line East trains arrive and depart New London each weekday. The trains run from New Haven to Old Saybrook on weekends and holidays, leaving New London users without Shore Line East service those days.

"This is a good way to end a historic election with a consensus building day for our community," Pero said. "It's good to have something we agree on at the end. Hopefully in a year or six months we'll be celebrating weekend trains here."

Todd O'Donnell, a part owner of the Union Square station and a member of the coalition, said working to expand the train service will be a true test for the winner of Tuesday's election.

"This is a precise example of why we want a strong mayor in this city," O'Donnell said. "We need your leadership to make this happen."

After the event, all three attending candidates had similar strategies to become that leader: face-to-face meets.

"Doors, doors, doors," Pero said of the days ahead. "We have a campaign committee out there delivering campaign literature. It's about getting your base energized for Tuesday, and to make sure you're organized for Election Day."

It's been a long campaign, said Finizio, who said he'd get four hours of sleep each of the next three nights "if I'm lucky." Finizio said his campaign planned to knock on 2,000 more doors and continue efforts to get voters out to the polls.

"We're working around-the-clock, doing events and working right up until 8:05 Tuesday night," he said. "Most people have made up their minds, but at this point it's really just making sure we get out the vote."

Lockwood said he's been campaigning from the north to the east side of the city, where he said he has a strong base. Lockwood has embraced the role of underdog and is confident going into the homestretch.

"Despite the skepticism, I'm hearing we're doing very well," he said. "It's going to be a tighter race than people think."

s.goldstein@theday.com