By Matthew K. Roy
PEABODY — The abandoned stretch of rail bed was helpless against the vegetation that, year after year, was gradually overtaking it.
"It was just a forgotten part of Peabody that was left back in the depths of the woods," said Blair Haney, Peabody's acting director of community development.
Its future was first imagined in the city's 1990 Master Plan. The idea — transforming the railroad into a bike path — inched slowly over the various hurdles in front of it. Neighbors had to buy in, a design needed to be drawn up and a funding source found.
Construction began in the winter of 2008. The railroad was ripped up and the overgrown brush and trees were cut back to make room for a smooth asphalt path. The Peabody bikeway, officially dubbed the Independence Greenway, is now nearly complete.
"It's beautiful," Jack Hogan said.
Hogan, 62, was walking with his wife recently on a section of the bikeway near Ross Park in West Peabody.
"We used to walk down Lowell Street with all the traffic and no sidewalks, and this is so much better," Hogan said. "They really did a good job back here."
The 4.6-mile path begins at the Middleton line and, after being interrupted by Route 1 and Interstate 95, continues to Lahey Clinic next to the Northshore Mall. It is 10 feet wide with a 2-foot shoulder of crushed stone on either side.
The bikeway was immediately popular. The tracks were barely out of the ground and people were on it.
"It's primarily a recreational asset and people are treating it as such," Haney said during a recent tour. "You're not out on the road biking in a bike lane or walking on the sidewalk of a busy street. You're kind of back here where it's a lot more peaceful, a lot safer, a lot more relaxing."
Mayor Michael Bonfanti has scheduled a formal ribbon-cutting ceremony for this Thursday. In the meantime, a final coat of asphalt will be applied and the path separated into two distinct lanes by a painted striped line, Haney said.
The city paid $162,000 in Community Preservation Act funds to design the bikeway. The rest of the more than $3 million cost was shouldered by the state and federal government. MassHighway has overseen construction, and the state will convey the path to the city when its work is done.
Acquiring the railroad line was a crucial first step, Haney said. When the railroad was decommissioned in the 1960s, Peabody gained control of the right-of-way on a portion of the line to make improvements to its water and sewer infrastructure, according to Haney. The city received the remaining land it needed, everything west of Route 1, for the nominal fee of $1 from the MBTA, he said. It then benefited from easements granted by Hannaford Plaza and Simon Malls.
The challenge going forward will be finding ways to preserve and enhance the resource, Bonfanti said. He is considering the establishment of a committee that will be charged with oversight.
"We have got to make sure that it's safe and well maintained and that people help out and keep it that way," he said.
The city has so far responded to suggestions from bikeway users. Crosswalks at street crossings on Lowell and Russell Street have been repainted and signs alerting motorists have been installed. Markers will be put every one-tenth of a mile on the path to orient public safety personnel responding to a call.
Following Peabody's example
The bikeway has made an impression in neighboring communities.
"I could not believe I was in Peabody," Charles Lincicum said.
A Danvers resident who grew up in Peabody, Lincicum takes frequent trips along the path with his wife. He marveled at the landscape, the fields and marshland, and wildlife that he has seen on the branch that extends toward Middleton.
"It slows the pace of life down," Danvers Planning Director Karen Nelson said, highlighting the virtues of a path. Nelson and Lincicum, members of the Rail Trail Advisory Committee, recently visited Peabody for ideas that could inform the trail being planned in Danvers.
The bikeway unlocks more than 400 acres of open space for Peabody residents, city officials tout, including the Norris Brook Conservation Area, the Hoover Street Conservation Area, the Crystal Lake Conservation Area, the Ross Park Complex and Brooksby Farm.
It is a venue for exercise and the contemplation of nature, but the bikeway can serve other practical purposes, Haney said. A Little Leaguer could use it to commute to a game at Ross Park, for example.
Peabody's goal is to eventually extend the path downtown along the North River and connect it to a path in Salem. Toward that end, the city is purchasing 0.6 miles of the railroad that would bring the bikeway from Route 128 to Endicott Street.
The focus now, however, is on enjoying the work that is already done. For Peabody, it was well worth the wait.
"These things take time," Haney said. "But they happen."
