Sudbury's Rail Trails Are Open Everywhere Except on Paper

At the old Sudbury Station site, two former rail lines cross at an angle. Local people call the spot the "diamond junction." In July, officials stood there to cut a ribbon on the Mass Central Rail Trail. The trail they opened had already been carrying walkers and cyclists for about a year. The other trail through the diamond, the Bruce Freeman, is open and maintained by the town but still hasn't had a ribbon cutting.

This fall, the pavement is ready on both trails. The unfinished work is at the edges: a plaza waiting on an accessible ramp, a small parking lot at the busiest access point, and street crossings that have become the town's main concern. Those details shape a fall outing more than the trails themselves.

The ceremonies are running behind the riding

Sudbury Weekly's account of the July ribbon cutting said the event had been in the works for more than a decade. The paper also noted, with some humor, that the trail "has been heavily utilized since paving was largely completed last year." The ceremony was held on Thursday, July 16, at the diamond.

The trail exists because of an Eversource project. The utility ran a 115-kV transmission line through the former MBTA corridor, with 7.6 of its 9 miles underground. The line was energized in December 2024, and site restoration finished in May 2025. The Department of Conservation and Recreation then completed the public path on top. Select Board Chair Janie Dretler spoke at the ceremony and referred to "many intense community conversations for Sudbury." She closed with this line:

"May this trail remind us that when we invest in connection, we build not only better paths, but stronger communities."

The Bruce Freeman Rail Trail is further along in practice and less finished on paper. It runs 4.4 miles in Sudbury, from the Concord line near Powder Mill Road south to the diamond. MassDOT handed maintenance of that section to the town in July 2026. The town's late-summer rail trail update lists one exception: accessibility problems with the ramp and plaza at the Broadacres Farm lot on Morse Road. Repairs there are expected later this fall. After that, MassDOT District 3 "should be in a position to schedule a formal opening of the trail."

The same plaza is holding up the trail's artwork. The Friends of the Bruce Freeman Rail Trail commissioned an iron sculpture, fabricated by Walter Clark at Stonybrook Fine Arts. According to the town, it is in storage in Sudbury until it can be installed in the Broadacres plaza.

The diamond is the hub, and its lot is small

The diamond is where the two trails meet, so it is also where the parking matters most. Recent improvements there created 9 to 10 formal spaces. That isn't much for a junction that serves both trails. The town memo says members of the Rail Trails Advisory Committee have been talking with owners of land along the Chiswick Park driveway about more parking for users of both trails.

Until then, the lots along the Bruce Freeman spread the load, and they are a better place to start than the diamond on a busy weekend.

The Friends of the Bruce Freeman Rail Trail paid for both accessible restrooms, one at Broadacres and one at the diamond. The Broadacres lot has also hosted accessible cycling programs run by All Out Adventures. The Sudbury Commission on Disability and the Rail Trails Advisory Committee sponsored those programs, and the Commission received more funding in 2026 for additional events.

The Friends group lists the rules for the Bruce Freeman. Class 1 and Class 2 e-bikes are allowed, motorized vehicles are not, and pets must be leashed. The Mass Central pages reviewed for this post don't list their own e-bike or dog rules, so the Bruce Freeman rules shouldn't be assumed to carry over past the diamond.

The crossings are where the town is focused

With the paving done, the town's attention has moved to the street crossings. The memo says residents and drivers keep reporting pedestrians and cyclists who don't stop or press the flashing beacons at busy road intersections along the Bruce Freeman. The Rail Trails Advisory Committee worked with the Police Department and a graphic consultant on new yard signs along the trail that ask users to "be safe and be seen" by pressing the beacon.

The signal at Hudson and Peakham Roads is a separate issue. The town now controls that signal, and concerns about its timing keep coming back. Public Works Director Tina Rivard has recommended a corridor study of Hudson Road.

The Mass Central has the same issue on a newer trail. The memo describes rising reports of cyclists crossing local streets without slowing or stopping for traffic, and says the town is contacting DCR about steps that may be needed at those crossings. Trail etiquette has also come up at recent committee meetings, and the committee is looking at ways to encourage courtesy among all trail users.

Heading west from the diamond toward Main Street in Hudson

The trail guide from the Mass Central Rail Trail organization marks distances along the Sudbury section. Dutton Road is at about mile 1, the old Sudbury Station and the diamond are at about mile 3, Union Avenue comes just after, and the Eversource lot is at mile 4.3. The route also passes the Section Toolhouse, and the Wayside Inn is about two miles south of the Dutton Road crossing.

The first stop to know about is close to the diamond. Sudbury Coffee Works is at 15 Union Avenue, and the trail guide puts food and coffee about a quarter mile south of the Union Avenue access, on a road it describes as busy. The café's posted hours are weekdays 6:30 a.m. to 3 p.m. and Saturdays 7 a.m. to 3 p.m. It is closed Sundays, so it works for a Saturday ride but not a Sunday one.

Going west, the trail spends only about 300 feet in Stow, but there are farms right beside it. Ferjulian's Farm borders the trail, and Honey Pot Hill Orchard is a short ride from Gleasondale. Honey Pot Hill updated its pick-your-own page on October 6 with the apple varieties available. The farm describes its usual apple season as early August into early November and lists picking daily from 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. At Ferjulian's, flower picking ended Sunday, October 4. Its homepage still lists fall apples and pumpkins.

In Hudson, the Mass Central connects to the Assabet River Rail Trail. From there, you can leave at Broad Street and continue to Main and South Streets downtown. These are the stops along that stretch, with the hours each one currently posts on its own website:

• The Vintage Café, 246 Main Street, serves breakfast-hour food Wednesday through Sunday and is closed Monday and Tuesday.
• New City Microcreamery, 28 Main Street, has a Halloween event at the Hudson shop on Friday, October 30.
• Rail Trail Flatbread Co., 33 Main Street, opens at 11:30 a.m. on weekdays and serves weekend brunch from 10 a.m. to 2 p.m.
• Medusa Brewing Company opens its taproom at noon on Fridays, Saturdays and Sundays and is closed Mondays.

Hours change with the season, so it's best to check before planning a ride around a particular stop.

The edges are still being built

The trails are also about to get longer. Bruce Freeman Phase 3 would continue the trail south from Union Avenue to the Framingham line. MassDOT puts the extension at about 1.3 miles, and the town puts it at 1.5. The engineering firm Fuss & O'Neill spent the summer on the 100% design package. That package includes a new parking lot and trailhead on Nobscot Road and an accessible side path to view the cattle pass under the old railbed near the Framingham line. The plans are expected to go to the Sudbury Conservation Commission later this fall. The town memo also reports that the Boston region's Metropolitan Planning Organization approved full construction funding in its Transportation Improvement Program for federal fiscal years 2027 through 2031.

To the east, the Mass Central extension from its current end near Landham Road to Wayland Center is in design, and construction is expected to start in 2028. The Sudbury Cultural Council has also met with the advisory committee about adding more artwork along the Bruce Freeman.

Anyone who wants to follow the parking, crossing and Phase 3 discussions can attend the Rail Trails Advisory Committee. It met virtually tonight, October 7, and its next posted meetings are November 4 and December 2. The Friends of the Bruce Freeman Rail Trail have two October events farther up the trail. The Break Free 5K Run/Walk is Saturday, October 10, from 10 a.m. to noon on Academy Street in Chelmsford. Trek or Treat on October 27 is a two-mile ride from West Concord to East Acton, followed by activities on the East Acton Village Green.

Cheryl has watched these rail corridors move from proposals and lawsuits to paved paths with restrooms and beacons. She keeps up with the details at the trail edges, from the Nobscot Road trailhead to the lot near the diamond, because those details shape how a part of town works day to day. If you'd like to talk about how the trails fit into your plans in Sudbury, Cheryl Stakutis would be glad to hear from you. Work with Cheryl.