NEWBURYPORT — It's not quite done, but already the Clipper City Rail Trail is attracting a loyal cadre of fans.
Senior project manager Geordie Vining said yesterday walkers and bicyclists have already started using pieces of the trail, a 1.1-mile long, 10-foot wide, paved way that will lead from the north side of the Massachusetts Bay Transportation Authority train station to the Merrimack River, near the Route 1 bridge, on the old rail corridor.
"It's been one of my favorite projects," Vining said yesterday.
Vining has worked on the project for years and said he has enjoyed the chance to add new public space to the city rather than renovating an existing space.
City officials have spent years working on finding money and resources, which have come from state and federal grants, for the trail.
The abandoned rail line once carried freight trains from the edge of town to the waterfront. That service ended in the 1970s, and the city has eyed the land for such a development ever since. For years, residents have used the rail bed as an unofficial recreational walking path.
Vining said the contractor is indicating that the first phase of the trail will be "substantially completed" within a month. During the spring, landscaping and other "punch list" items will be finished, he said, and enhancements will be added to the area, including benches, sculptures, signs and trash barrels.
The Rail Trail will pass over Low Street via a footbridge that was built over the summer, along the old rail bed and down to the waterfront, where it will connect to the Harborwalk along the Merrimack River and to a boardwalk connecting to Cashman Park.
The trail will go easterly along the river, travel underneath Route 1, and connect to Waterfront West, the area between the Black Cow restaurant and Michael's Harborside.
In recent days, workers could be spotted on parts of the trail, including at the Washington Street intersection. The contractor still needs to put the asphalt down and do the fencing work, Vining said.
A grand opening of the Rail Trail will be held in the spring, Vining said.
