The Bay Colony Rail Trail | A Newton-Needham-Dover-Medfield Project

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The unused rail line between Needham and Medfield offers a wonderful opportunity for a rail trail conversion. This rail corridor has few road intersections and runs along the Needham Town Forest, then through miles of woods in Dover away from residences and along ponds and conservation land.

The line is owned by the MBTA and is no longer used by its current operator, the Bay Colony Railroad. Representatives of both companies have indicated that they are open to a rail to trail conversion.

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Upper Falls Greenway

The Newton Bicycle/Pedestrian Task Force launched a website to promote the conversion of the Newton Upper Falls Greenway. For a detailed map and more information, visit http://www.upperfallsgreenway.org.

Rail Trails Are Key to Public Health: Ray LaHood

The Rails-To-Trails Conservancy site reported recently on their 25th anniversary reception in downtown Washington, D.C., earlier this month, where Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood was a featured speaker. According to the article, Secretary LaHood said that encouraging more biking and walking is one of the most important things we can do in the nation's battle against obesity and related illness. He also said the rail-trail program "has done more for health care than anything we've ever done in America. Rail-trails have contributed so much to people's good health over the last 25 years--also preventing heart disease, and providing the kinds of opportunities people have looked for, for a long, long time."

Danvers Rail Trail Management Plan

The Danvers Rail Trail Advisory Committee has created an excellent 57 page Development / Maintenance / Management document for their new rail trail:

PDF file is 6.8 mb, link is HERE or HERE

BCRT Update on 5/31 for Needham Residents

BCRT organizers in Needham are holding an open public meeting on Wednesday, May 11th at the Broadmeadow School (120 Broad Meadow Road in Needham) at 7:30. All are welcome, especially Needham residents!

The agenda includes updates on the rail trail progress, including the exciting new developments that could lead to an unpaved trail in a much shorter time frame.

BCRT to Co-Host Charles River Railroad Bike Tour

MassBike and the Bay Colony Rail Trail are hosting a tour on May 28th along the route of the old Charles River Railroad. A portion of this route is the very corridor where the Bay Colony Rail Trail will be developed.

The Charles River Railroad was how they brought in all the gravel to fill the Back Bay. It was also the base on which entrepreneurs the second half of the 18th century thought that they could build one of the major railroads of Southern New England, with grandiose names like the Boston and New York Central Railroad, and later the New York and New England Railroad. They were wrong, and the entire system, including what was left of the Charles River Railroad was taken over by the New York, New Haven, and Hartford Railroad at the end of the 1800’s.

2011 Needham Bike Fair

Join us on May 21st for the second annual Needham Bike Fair. Like last year, the Bike Fair will feature several great events all held at the Newman Elementary School in Needham, including:

Video interview about future plans of the Mass Central Rail Trail

On Track with the Bay Colony Rail Trail (Winter 2011 Newsletter)

A cross-country skiier enjoys a porton of the 50-mile Air Line Rail Trail in eastern Connecticut, not far from the Connecticut River and the Massachusetts border.

Iron Horse Preservation Society FAQ

Frequently Asked Questions About Creating an Interim, Low-Cost Rail Trail

The Bay Colony Rail Trail is investigating the prospect of working with an organization called Iron Horse Preservation Society to remove the rails and ties from the unused railroad corridor running through Medfield, Dover, Needham and Newton. Once the existing materials are removed, the organization would create a crushed stone path – potentially at no cost to the community. This would result in the creation of a “linear park” as a recreational and environmental resource for the community that could reach completion in less time than most rail-trail projects across the country.

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Ashuwillticook Rail Trail Parking and Benches

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Newton Upper Falls looking to Wellesley

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