City will study how to extend rail trail to Southampton Rd.

Nov. 26, 2021 | Amy Porter
amyporter@thewestfieldnews.com

Signs warn of the northern end of the Columbia Greenway Rail Trail on the bridge over the Westfield River approaching Women’s Temperance Park off North Elm Street. The city is studying how to extend the path to the north.
Reminder Publications photo by Michael Ballway

WESTFIELD – Members of the Westfield Engineering Department hosted a Zoom kickoff hearing on Nov. 17 for a feasibility study on how to connect the Columbia Greenway Rail Trail’s northern end at Women’s Temperance Park to a multi-use trail that the state plans to build along Southampton Road (Routes 10 and 202) north of the Massachusetts Turnpike.

Also at the meeting were members of the Friends of the Columbia Greenway Rail Trail, the Southampton Greenway, cyclists who use the Columbia Greenway, and some residents living in the area.

Westfield recently won a $60,000-plus grant for the feasibility study from MassTrails, and has hired Toole Design to help. Landscape architect Stephanie Weyer from Toole Design said MassTrails’ purpose is to expand trails in the state. She said at this first public meeting she was looking for thoughts on how to extend the Westfield rail trail to the north. There is also a survey for residents and rail trail users that she encouraged people to take at bit.ly/TrailConnector_Survey1.

Weyer said the connector would link the Columbia Greenway trail — which follows an old rail line from the Westfield River south through downtown Westfield all the way to Southwick, where it meets a similar trail in that town – to the bicycle and hiking trail network to the north. The proposed Southampton Greenway would connect to the existing Manhan Rail Trail, a paved path through Easthampton and Northampton.

A safe route for bicyclists stretching from the Connecticut state line to the center of Hampshire County, passing through several downtown areas, would help people get around Westfield and connect to schools without producing carbon emissions from cars.

After getting input from the meeting and the survey, Weyer said there will be another public meeting in February to present recommended design alternatives.

Many of the participants on the call, which is posted at Westfield Community Programming on YouTube, were experienced riders, the majority of whom were skeptical of the possibility of a safe trail on Routes 10-202.

One caller said the problem is that drivers are not concerned about cyclists, and are on their phones and not paying attention. He said when he’s biking in a bike lane that is not protected from the driver’s lane, he does not feel safe. He said there needs to be a clear separation between the bike lanes and driving lanes, to protect cyclists.

Another said protecting a lane with a physical barrier is a problem in the winter, because then the bike lanes are not plowed. He said if the goal is alternative transit, having it usable in the winter is important. He also said it’s a problem when cyclists and drivers are competing for the same pavement.

Cyclist Peter Salomone said on the southern part of the rail trail in Connecticut, where there is limited access due to a highway, the state Department of Transportation considered putting a tunnel under the highway.

A founding member of the Columbia Greenway effort encouraged the group to look at alternate routes, such as Montgomery Road to the high school, down to the Brickyard Ponds area and out to Southampton Road further north. He said the trail is an opportunity to experience Westfield, and as the city has done on Western Avenue out to Court Street, he recommended seeking to create connectors with schools and other places.

City Engineer Mark Cressotti said some of the parameters they are facing include the understanding that the Massachusetts Department of Transportation will build a 10-foot separated trail along Southampton Road north of the turnpike to north of North Road. He said putting a trail there does connect some of the destinations.

“It’s already in the works. How do we connect to that?” he asked.

Cressotti also said there are two different users for the project. He said the city focuses not on long-distance travel but more on local rides.

“Then there’s another user, the big-scale multi-space traverse [rider]. The city’s focus may not align with that position,” Cressotti said.

For example, the city doesn’t look at winter use as a priority, “until there’s a demand. Maybe we need to relook at that,” he said.

Utility Engineer Matt Gamelli said from an engineering standpoint, the city is just getting started with the feasibility study.

“We’ll be looking at everything,” Gamelli said. “We haven’t decided exactly where it’s going to go. It’s going to be a fun project, I think, and I am excited for the opportunities it presents.”

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