Home Page - Recreational Trail Opportunities in the Framingham, Massachusetts Area.

(Last updated: 9/29/05)

Several hundreds of miles of abandoned railroad right of way have been converted to recreational trails during the past thirty years, and these trails have resulted in many enthusiastic supporters.  Prior to a trail being constructed, fears are often voiced that it will lead to crime towards people traveling alone on the trail, that property values will decline, that liability concerns and rising insurance rates will wreck havoc with a town's finances.  Alternately, is also argued that a proposed trail will be overused, that people will flock to it and overwhelm the property of abutters if not the town itself.  It is feared that the potential users will add traffic to already over crowded streets, that they will arrive like a hoard of locusts to vandalize the trail, and leave their trash behind them as they depart. Neighbors will awake one day to find an amusement park behind their homes.

Many of these property owners may also have begun to assume or anticipate private use of this property.  They  point to the railroads having taken land from previous owners of the adjoining property, and they feel that their rights in the present should come before the continued welfare of the public through conversion of the land to a recreational park.  Feelings can be strongly held and many of the arguments are emotional, centering on the common themes of the loss of privacy and threats to public safety. 

Actually there are many years of trail experience to put these fears to rest, and there is not one location where an established trail was deemed a bad idea for a community and closed or removed.  Anticipated problems such as trespassing or loss of privacy can be greatly mitigated by means of various barriers and vegetation to provide screening.   Anticipated parking problems seldom occur when prior forecasting and planning is done, and existing laws are enforced.  

A great many former opponents have come to embrace a nearby trail after they use it and begin to see it as an increase to 'their' space, rather than an intrusion.  Additional space and opportunities arise which had never been considered, much less appreciated.    Housewives now get together for a walk rather than over a cigarette and coffee.   Kids are found with their friends on skates and scooters.  Parents are found walking with their children, retirees are found sharing the news of the day.  Ask almost any realtor, and they will tell you that a nearby walking trail or jogging trail is a top priority for today's homebuyer.   Most trails include community message boards and they are heavily used.  

For more information see: Rail Trail Politics

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