Saugus Bike to the Sea trail project almost finished

SAUGUS – Work is moving right along on Saugus’ new rail trail, and Bike to the Sea Project Manager Clay Larsen said he’s hoping to finish the 21/2-mile trail in “about a month.”The path starts at the Revere Line near Salem Street and goes past the Anna Parker Playground, past the Belmonte Middle School, through Central Street to Chute Brook and out to Boston Street.So far, Larsen said, the non-profit group Iron Horse has torn up railroad ties and laid down the trail surface from Revere to Central Street.”They’ve been going very quickly,” said Larsen. “They’re completing the project between Central Street and Lincoln Avenue right now. They’ve only been on the job for two months and they’re almost done. It took Malden a year-and-a-half to do 31/2 miles. Iron Horse is doing the same distance in less than half the time.”Larsen said workers are currently installing safety signs along the trail along with gates and boulders at trail entrances to keep cars and other motor vehicles off.New wooden fencing was visible Tuesday at the intersection of Essex and School streets and on Saturday, Larsen is organizing a trail cleanup from 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. at Anna Parker Playground so volunteers can help remove some debris and brush along the path.View a map of the trail so far.View Saugus Bike to the Sea Trail in a larger mapWith more than half of the trail resurfaced with recycled asphalt, Larsen said the trail is already attracting attention.”On the weekends it’s been pretty busy,” said Larsen. “I think I saw about 20 people out one day. People are really enjoying it as they start to discover it.”Selectman Stephen Horlick said he’s already walked the trail twice since last week.”I walked from Central Street to Denver Street then to Adams Avenue and back,” said Horlick. “It’s looking good. They’re going to get in there and clean up a lot of the loose debris, but I’ve been seeing people on there every morning and in the afternoon walking along. It’s a good deal.”Despite its gaining popularity, Larsen is still urging residents to keep off the trail until it’s completely finished “just to be careful.”The Saugus trail is a part of a roughly 10-mile trail that has been in the works for nearly 20 years. If all goes according to plan, the path will start in Everett, run through Malden, Revere and Saugus, and finish in Lynn.Larsen said work is finished in Everett and wrapping up soon in Malden. With work slated to begin on the Revere stretch in the spring, Larsen said he hasn’t been able to make any progress in Lynn.”Over the winter once this trail is done maybe we can bring Mayor Kennedy down and have her walk the trail,” said Larsen. “I think that will be really important. We’re looking toward Saugus being complete and then (Lynn) being inspired by how great it is.”Mayor Judith Flanagan Kennedy said last year that she would not sign a lease with the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority to turn the city’s abandoned rail beds into bike paths because of liability concerns.For more information about the rail trail, go to www.biktothesea.com.Matt Tempesta can be reached at [email protected].