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Sudbury’s Police Department is acquiring speciality equipment and developing educational materials and event concepts to educate the community on rail trail safety. Lieutenant John Perodeau joined the Rail Trails Advisory Committee (RTAC) meeting on January 7 to present what the police department has been doing to address safety concerns on and around the Bruce Freeman and Mass Central rail trails.
One of the top concerns in the community has been unsafe behavior around road crossings. Residents have observed cyclists crossing roads without stopping and using the crossing signal systems. While that’s also a concern for the Sudbury Police Department, Perodeau cited motorized vehicle use on the trails, and locating injured trail users as two major concerns for the department. He noted that mile markers on the Bruce Freeman Rail Trail make it easier for injured pedestrians to indicate their location when requesting police assistance, but no such markers exist on the Mass Central Rail Trail at this time.
The department has acquired several pieces of equipment, including bicycles, drones with cameras that pick up heat signatures, and soon a dirt bike, to accelerate response times on the trails. Strategic use of safety signage will serve double duty as landmarks for pedestrians to identify their location for police response.
The department secured grant funding to meet a variety of education and enforcement needs related to the trails:
The department is also considering a variety of events throughout the year, including a bike rodeo, a Halloween event, and creative “whistle stops” and ticketing booths that reward good behavior on the trails. They also acquired several dozen helmets, bike safety coloring books, bike lights, and neon bags to give out to Sudbury residents while raising awareness for safety on the trails.
The overriding priority, according to Perodeau, was education over enforcement. That included a real-time education during the meeting on the Massachusetts laws and definitions around class-1 and class-2 e-bikes, motorized bicycles and mopeds. The primary concern was the use of dirt bikes by underage operators in Sudbury. Perodeau noted that the department has been dealing with unsafe use of dirt bikes throughout town, including on recreational fields. He also noted the department gets a couple calls per month regarding golf carts.
The committee was enthusiastic about all the work the department was doing to educate the community and maximize safety on the trails. Upcoming challenges, like the design and opening of the Route 20 road crossings for both trails, will require additional coordination and collaboration in the months ahead. The full discussion is in the Sudbury TV recording below.
