The Maine Department of Transportation selected a Unity company to take over operations and maintenance of the Rockland Branch Railroad, after the rails have been without an operator for months.

Maine Switching Services aims to bring freight service back to the line in the spring, the department announced Thursday.

It also aims to offer “scenic train rides and rail excursions by this fall,” the department said in its announcement. But the company’s proposal did not include hosting railroad services for an extended Amtrak Downeaster line, as some had hoped.

Maine Switching Services already operates on the state-owned Belfast and Moosehead Lake Railroads, the department said.

Commissioner Bruce Van Note said the department looks forward “to growing our partnership” with the private company.

“We believe Maine Switching Services has the experience necessary to provide high-quality freight service for customers on the Rockland Branch Railroad,” Van Note said in a written statement.

The line has been without an operator since Midcoast Railservice announced over the summer that it would terminate its lease on the roughly 56-mile stretch. The state released a request for proposals to take over service in September.

Maine Switching Services was selected from a total of five proposals submitted, the department said.