The MBTA has opened up the final component of its new regional rail station in Natick Center: a trail connection that connects the outbound train platform directly to the the Cochituate Rail Trail.
Last summer, the T celebrated the grand opening of a new, fully-accessible Natick Center station on the Framingham-Worcester Line.
But a key access point to the new station had been still under construction until recently: a direct connection from the station to the Cochituate Rail Trail, which formerly ended two blocks away near Mechanic Street.
The Friends of Natick Trails report that that connection (pictured at left) finally opened last month, offering a direct, step-free pathway from the western end of the outbound platform to the rail trail.
The new access point is located just west of the Main Street overpass.
To access the trail from the inbound station platform, visitors can use the station's elevators, stairs, or ramps to cross the tracks and descend to the outbound platform.
The Cochituate Rail Trail is a 3.4 mile car-free path that follows the course of an abandoned railway between downtown Natick and the Saxonville neighborhood of Framingham.
About a mile north of the Natick Center station, MassDOT is also currently constructing a new shared-use path along Route 9 as part of its Route 9-27 highway interchange expansion.
That project is not expected to be complete for several more years, but plans call for a separated shared-use pathway along the southern curb of Route 9, a four-lane divided highway lined with strip malls and car dealerships, to connect the Cochituate Rail Trail to North Main Street (Route 27).
