The Massachusetts Department of Transportation recently broke ground on the Lawrence Manchester Rail Corridor or LMRC improvement project that seeks to turn part of an abandoned rail line into an approximately 1.5-mile shared use path.

[Above left to right: MassDOT’s Tibbits-Nutt, Lawrence Mayor DePeña. Photo via Town of Lawrence.]

The project – which should be completed by the summer of 2028 – also includes rehabilitation of existing LMRC bridges over the Merrimack River and the South Canal, construction of a new bridge over Manchester Street for the shared-use path, and replacement of the Lowell Street bridge with a precast concrete culvert structure. Additionally, the approaches on Lowell Street will be reconstructed to accommodate the proposed structure and connect with the existing infrastructure.

Other improvements incorporated into the LMRC project include traffic signal reconstruction; curb extensions; construction of new sidewalks or rehabilitating existing ones; plus, the installation of accessible curb ramps, crosswalks, and pedestrian signal equipment where the shared path intersects with public roadways.

[Editor’s note: In January, MassDOT noted that it added roughly 15 miles of new shared use paths in 2024; expanding multimodal connectivity and opportunities for recreation statewide while also enhancing pedestrian and bicyclist safety.]

Further improvements include installation of granite curbing, minor drainage system upgrades, mill and overlay of the existing pavement at street intersections, and full depth pavement construction for both the shared-use path and selected roadway intersection areas. 

“We’re proud to partner with our municipal leaders to bring the Lawrence Manchester Rail Corridor to life, transforming a long-unused rail line into a vibrant shared-use path,” said Monica Tibbits-Nutt, MassDOT secretary and CEO, in a statement.

“This project isn’t just about infrastructure, it’s about equity,” she said. “It’s about ensuring every resident has safe, reliable access to walk, bike, and connect to their community, regardless of zip code or background.”

“The Manchester Rail Trail is a transformative project that will open new opportunities to connect people to work, school, home, and more, and we’re grateful for our partnership with our state and federal delegations and the city’s leadership to make projects like this become a reality,” added Jonathan Gulliver, MassDOT highway administrator. “Shared use paths are proven tools to support mobility and economic growth, and the Manchester Rail Trail will result a new means of travel that will stretch from one end of the city to the other.”

“The Lawrence Manchester Rail Corridor project is a transformative investment in the future of our city,” noted Lawrence Mayor Brian DePeña. “By turning an abandoned rail line into a modern shared-use path, we are creating a safer, more connected community – one that promotes active transportation, supports local economic development, and improves quality of life for all our residents.”

Across the country, state departments of transportation are working on similar shared trail projects.

For example, the Illinois Department of Transportation recently began work on the latest extension of the Route 66 Trail in McLean County.

Made possible by a $3.2 million grant via the agency’s Illinois Transportation Enhancement Program, the project will extend the trail 4.5 miles from McLean to Funks Grove – enhancing a popular travel and recreation option in central Illinois while drawing tourists, creating economic opportunity and improving connections for communities along the old Route 66.

Meanwhile, the Washington State Department of Transportation is currently building the Gravelly-Thorne Connector; a 1.3-mile-long, 14-foot-wide path between Tillicum and Gravelly Lake Drive Southwest in Lakewood. That paved urban trail will run parallel to southbound I-5 and is expected to open in late fall 2026.

And in December 2024, the Hawaii Department of Transportation completed construction of the $15.7 million Leeward Bikeway – a dedicated bikeway within the former Oahu Railway & Land Company right-of-way between Philippine Sea Road in ‘Ewa and Waipahu Depot Street. 

The Hawaii Department of Transportation has partnered with four island counties to help deliver a dozen all-electric, zero-emission buses that are projected to reduce greenhouse gas emissions by more than 17 tons over their lifecycle.

[Above photo by Hawaii DOT]

The buses, which collectively cost $16.6 million, are headed to Kaua’i, Maui, and Hawai’i Island and will replace similar diesel-powered units. All Hawaii counties have pledged to convert their entire bus fleets to renewable fuel power by 2035, noted Hawaii DOT.

Hawaii DOT helped pay for those buses with $11.2 million from the Federal Transit Administration’s “Low or No Emissions” grant program and the agency’s “Buses and Bus Facilities” formula program. The Hawaii State Energy Office chipped in $3.53 million as well from the Volkswagen Settlement fund, with the four counties contributing the rest.

Charging stations already have been installed with separate federal grants, so the buses are ready to go into service right away, according to Shelly Kunishige, communications manager for the Hawaii DOT.

The agency said that each EV bus can reduce oxides of nitrogen emissions by 1.445 tons over its lifetime compared to a similar diesel-powered vehicle. For 12 buses, that amounts to 17.34 tons of emissions.

Hawaii Governor Josh Green (D) touted the buses’ environmental virtues in a Hawaii DOT news release, but he also touched on how the buses “will provide our residents and visitors with additional transportation options that will help keep our communities connected.”

The bus purchase is aligned with Hawaii DOT’s new “Energy Security and Waste Reduction Plan,” a blueprint for the department to help meet the state’s goal of reducing the level of emissions measured in 2005 by 50 percent in 2030. Hawaii DOT recently extended public comment on that plan through August 31.

The EV buses “further our commitment to the reduction of greenhouse gas emissions,” Hawaii DOT’s Kunishige said. “We also have pledged to build out our multimodal infrastructure in the next five years so people have a choice to walk and bike safely to their destinations,” she added.

Kunishige noted that Hawaii is second in the nation behind California for EV adoption in the public fleet, adding that Hawaii DOT is in the process of converting its light-duty fleet to EVs while building out the charging network.

The agency also recently implemented a Road Usage Charge or RUC for light-duty passenger electric vehicles or EVs on July 1, following a federally funded three-year research and demonstration project in concert with authorizing legislation passed in 2023.

The Maine Department of Transportation is filling the gap – literally – to help active transportation advocates complete a 16-mile multi-purpose trail for pedestrians and bicyclists in southern Maine.

[Above photo by the Maine DOT]

While this project involves just a 1.6-mile-long section of that trail, a series of barriers – a river, railroad tracks, the COVID-19 pandemic, easement issues, and a lack of funds – kept it on the shelf for more than a decade.

Now that Maine DOT has budgeted the lion’s share of the project with state and federal funds, construction is underway on the nearly $7 million project and is expected to be completed by November 2027.

When finished, the new trail will tie into existing trails that are part of southern Maine’s Eastern Trail and U.S. Bicycle Route 1. It also will become part of the East Coast Greenway; a 3,000-mile, 15-state route along a series of multi-use roads and trails from Maine to Florida.

In an interview with the Leaflet by AASHTO, Dakota Hewlett – a Maine DOT active transportation planner – said the department committed funds to the project because active transportation “is increasingly important” nationally and in Maine.

“Southern Maine communities are linked by our coastline, Route 1, and other roadways, and increasingly by the Eastern Trail,” he said.

Hewlett described the trail as “a spine route…from which people can access neighborhoods, jobs, public facilities, and many of the destinations these communities are known for.”

The project is being managed by the Town of Scarborough, but Maine DOT’s project manager is monitoring all work to ensure compliance with state and federal fiscal regulations, Hewlett said.

While Maine DOT brought the bulk of funding to the project, much of the pre-construction heavy lifting was done by the Town of Scarborough and the non-profit group Eastern Trail Alliance (ETA), Hewlett said. Those entities raised matching funds, undertook public outreach efforts, and kept the project alive.

Because of that prep work, the Maine DOT “can justify our involvement and magnify that planning work into infrastructure projects that make a positive impact for the public,” Hewlett said.

From the west, the new trail will cross the Nonesuch River, turn south, and cross a railroad track before turning northeast to a sports complex in South Portland. Two new active transportation bridges in in the Town of Scarborough – one to cross the river and another to cross the tracks – will be constructed toward the end of the project.

Chelsey Berlin, ETA’s executive director, said the vision of a continuous trail for walkers and bikers was the dream of “a long line of Mainers,” including ETA founder John Andrews, who worked on the project from the early 1990s until his death in 2017.

“Because of the efforts of John and others, we raised over $500,000 to go toward the project,” Berlin said, adding that this project means more to locals than just recreation.

“This is huge for multi-modal infrastructure in southern Maine,” Berlina noted. “People might use the trail now just to go to the store, get an ice cream cone in the summer, or go to work.”

Maine DOT’s Hewlett agreed. “Part of our multi-modal system includes facilities for bicycling and walking, and other human-scale modes of transportation,” he said.

“This project is an example of how over time Maine DOT and local governments can work together to connect a facility for bicycling and walking across an entire region of the state, providing a safe opportunity to connect multiple towns, neighborhoods, and destinations together,” Hewlett added.