Imagine having a cycle highway run parallel to the East-West Rail project connecting western and eastern Massachusetts?
It would be the backbone of which all communities could connect their cycling trails.
It would be a huge step towards creating a statewide cycling network offering residents an increased opportunity to commute without a vehicle, better recreation, social, physical, and environmental benefits, and endless economic opportunities.
I am proposing that while the East-West Rail project is being studied, a sister study also be conducted to assess what the incremental costs would be to build a parallel cross-Commonwealth cycle highway.
Examples Are Everywhere
Photo Credit www.CycleHighways.eu
Photo Credit www.CycleHighways.eu
Photo Credit www.CycleHighways.eu
Multi-use path built alongside Ottawa's Confederation line LRT. Photo Credit www.HansOnTheBike.com
Multi-use path built alongside Ottawa's Confederation line LRT. Photo Credit www.HansOnTheBike.com
Multi-use path built alongside Ottawa's Confederation line LRT. Photo Credit www.HansOnTheBike.com
Multi-use path built alongside Ottawa's Confederation line LRT. Photo Credit www.HansOnTheBike.com
Multi-use path built alongside Ottawa's Confederation line LRT. Photo Credit www.HansOnTheBike.com
Berlin Plans a New Network of Bike Superhighways. Photo Credit Bloomberg
The Netherlands built its first cycle highway in 2004. The rise of e-bikes means they're now spreading across the world. Photo Credit Dutch Cycling Embassy
New York State recently completed a state-wide cycling network, connecting previously disconnected trails to create a backbone of which other trails will now be able to connect to. Photo Credit www.EmpireTrail.ny.gov/