BELMONT- COMMUNITY PATH, BELMONT COMPONENT OF THE MCRT (PHASE I)

The Belmont leg of the Massachusetts Central Rail Trail (MCRT) will be implemented in a two phase approach, with Phase 1 being the stretch between the Fitchburg Cutoff Path at the Cambridge line to Belmont Center, and Phase 2 being Belmont Center to the Waltham line. The proposed project constitutes Phase 1 of the Belmont leg of the MCRT, and will be an off-road, shareduse path, which includes a 0.18 mile north-south connector between communities and the town’s many resources and amenities, which will provide safe, non-vehicular access under the active Fitchburg rail line to and through the high school campus (soon to be middle/high) and an east-west facility that would extend 1.11 miles from the Clark Street Bridge through town center to Brighton Street, connecting the Town’s center to the existing Fitchburg cut-off path, which leads to the Alewife Station, the Minuteman Bikeway and other destinations Cambridge, Boston and beyond. The proposed connector will consist of a grade-separated rail crossing, inclusive of drainage improvements, as necessary. A sump pump system is anticipated. This connector will also include a new, actuated pedestrian/bicycle crossing on Concord Avenue. The proposed connection from the Clark Street Bridge through town center to Brighton Street (B) will include improvements to the existing at-grade crossing at Brighton Street. The project proposes to install a fully actuated signal for all users/approaches, coordinated with the existing rail gates. Though more users will be crossing than exist today, the implementation of a standard signal system is expected to be more clearly understood by non-rail users, and therefore is expected to improve safety. As outlined in the Belmont Community Path Feasibility Study, based on anticipated user volumes combined with extensive public feedback, the path is proposed to be a 16-foot paved path with 2-foot grassed shoulders. Landscape improvements are proposed along the length of the path to improve the user experience and serve as a buffer to adjacent parcels.