Upon completion, the Northern Strand Community Trail will be a continuous 12-mile shared use path from the Mystic River to the Lynn seashore. Soon tens of thousands of residents in Everett, Malden, Revere, Saugus, and Lynn will have a new way to connect with each other and with the natural beauty of their marshes, rivers, and beaches. Eight miles will be a rail trail through Everett, Malden, Revere, Saugus, and Lynn. This rail trail ends part-way into Lynn, and will continue as a separate and safe on-road facility for four more miles through downtown Lynn to the seashore.
Background: For over a quarter century, since 1993, Bike to the Sea, a local grass roots advocacy group, has spearheaded an effort to build a rail trail on the right of way of the former Saugus Branch Railroad that ceased service in 1958. Bike to the Sea named the proposed route the Northern Strand Community Trail and worked with each municipality to piece it together over the years. In addition to being an active transportation route bypassing some of the most congested roads in the region, this path will form a key link of the 2500-mile East Coast Greenway that reaches from Florida to Maine.
The Solomon Foundation became involved in helping to advance the effort in 2016, and a year later, the Executive Office of Environmental Affairs (EEA) stepped in to fully fund, design, and construct the entire rail trail portion of the path. In support of the overall EEA effort, the Solomon Foundation partnered with the City of Lynn to fund the Lynn Walking and Bicycling Network Plan. The results of that effort can be seen here.
| Date | Milestone |
| 1993 | Bike to the Sea begins advocacy for the Northern Strand Community Trail |
| Everett portion of trail cleared and paved | |
| Malden portion of trail cleared and paved | |
| 2015 | Trail construction completed in Revere |
| 2016 | Joint meeting of trail advocates at the Saugus town library. Solomon Foundation begins involvement. |
| 2017 | The Executive Office of Energy and Environment commits to full design and implementation of the Northern Strand Community Trail. Hires Brown, Richardson & Rowe to lead the design team |
| 2018 | Solomon Foundation partners with the City of Lynn to fund the study of the on-street portion of the Northern Strand Community Path |
| 2019 | Lynn Bike Ped Plan for trail completed by Kittelson and Associates, Inc. |
| 2019 | Brown, Richardson, and Rowe, Inc. complete design of rail-trail segments |
| 2019 | EEA secures $13.7 M funding for implementation of rail-trail section through Everett, Malden, Revere, and Saugus |
| 2020 | Start of construction of remaining portions of rail-trail sections |
| 2020 | Quick-build portions of the on street section in downtown Lynn are completed through MassDOTs Shared Streets and Spaces grant |
| 2021 | Secure funding for Lynn on-street section |
| 2021 | Grand opening of rail trail portion of Northern Strand |
| 2022 | Design for the on-street Lynn extension to the beach is completed |
| 2023 | Everett connection to the Mystic River is completed |
| 2024 | Construction of the Lynn portion to begin |
Project Details
Initiated
- 1993 Bike to the Sea began advocacy
- 2016 Solomon involvement began
Solomon and Barr Investments
- $160,500
Partner Investments
- $19,000,000
Estimated Cost to Complete
- $8,000,000 Lynn section
Key Partners
- Bike to the Sea, Inc.
- City of Lynn
- Executive Office of Environmental Affairs
- Massachusetts Department of Transportation
Consultants
Status
- Construction of the rail trail portion is almost complete.
Press
Documents
Map/Directions
Photo Gallery
(click any image to view in lightbox)
