On the long-running campaign to complete a New Haven to Northampton rail trail, advocates made progress this summer when the final long stretch in Southington was opened to riders, pedestrians, skateboarders and other users.
Running from Lazy Lane to Aircraft Road, the new 1.27-mile section leaves less than a mile to finish before the trail’s southern end reaches the Plainville line.
But from there, the next steps will be especially hard: Less than a mile north of Aircraft Road, abandoned and rusting railroad tracks give way to the southern end of the still-active Pan Am Railways freight line.
The biggest appeal is that like rail trails across the country, the route is separated from streets and roads except for the occasional crossing. Users don’t have cars and trucks passing alongside them, and motorists aren’t slowed by lines of cyclists or pedestrians.
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