Sudbury rail trail committee seeks business tie-ins as Phase 3 design nears finish

Rail Trails Advisory Committee · Meeting of May 26, 2026

Sudbury rail trail officials pitch business tie-ins ahead of June 23 ribbon-cutting. Interim Rail Trails Coordinator Marcia Rasmussen and Rail Trails Advisory Committee Chair John Drabinski hosted a public forum May 26 to gather ideas for wayfinding signs, bike racks and business connections along the Bruce Freeman and Mass Central rail trails. Rasmussen said a state study projects $87 million to $182 million per year in new economic activity along the Mass Central corridor, and Hudson businesses on the Assabet River trail have reported sales gains of "10 to 25 percent when the weather is nice." MassDOT was set to release comments Tuesday on 75 percent design plans for Bruce Freeman Phase 3, with construction programmed for federal fiscal 2029.

Residents raised questions about winter plowing, a Coolidge-to-Mass Central connection across wetlands, and non-functioning water bubblers at Hudson Road and Broadacre Farm.

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Source: the Rail Trails Advisory Committee meeting of May 26, 2026, reported from the official video recording and transcript.