The branch was abandoned when the plant closed in 1951, but most of the rails between Somerset Avenue and Warner Boulevard remain in place.

The line was taken out of service between Dean Street and Raynham that year and formally abandoned in 1937, along with the section south of Dighton.

Stoughton service was retained because the branch was part of the former B&P and not subject to the court order allowing discontinuance.

[1] The state bought the abandoned line from Stoughton to Taunton on January 27, 1973 during an acquisition of Penn Central's commuter rail assets.

[1] At the beginning of 2008, Massachusetts Coastal Railroad took over several former CSX and Bay Colony lines with a ten-year operating agreement.

[6] In April 2017, MassDOT released a Request for Information regarding potential operators for the Dean Street Industrial Track and other state-owned rail lines beginning in 2018.

In the 1980s, the state began considering the expansion of MBTA Commuter Rail service to the South Coast cities of Taunton, Fall River, and New Bedford.

[16] The FEIS was released in April 2002 and approved in August; however, in July 2002 the MBTA revised the project cost to $600 million with an opening date of 2007.

[16] Planning restarted several years later; the Phase 2 Alternatives Analysis Report (which indicated electric or diesel service through Stoughton as the best choice) was released in September 2009.

[18] Concurring with previous documents it recommended that South Coast Rail be routed through Stoughton, citing in particular the need to add a billion-dollar fourth track from Back Bay to Forest Hills to accommodate service through Attleboro.

The substantial delay and increase in cost caused officials to consider alternate plans, including an earlier, interim addition of service to New Bedford via Middleborough.

The revised plan has attracted criticism from several directions, including Stoughton, Easton, and Raynham officials who have long been opposed to the Dighton and Somerset line being reactivated through their towns.

[23][24][25] In June 2023, the town of Dighton was awarded a $74,000 MassTrails grant to advance construction of Phase 1 of the rail trail through Sweets Knoll State Park.