RailRiders to run this year, awaiting removal of train tracks

Scenic RailRiders will be returning this spring, as the railroad company CSX is expected to wait until next year to pull up the tracks used by the pedal-operated rail cars.

“I’m told the city has gotten word from CSX, who verbally agreed not to pull the rails until 2027,” said Gary LeBlanc, owner of the business. “As long as CSX doesn’t change their mind, I should be good this season.”

The City Council is scheduled to consider signing a one-year lease with Scenic RailRiders at their next meeting on Monday, which would give the company the opportunity for another season of operation. The proposed contract would allow Scenic RailRiders to operate “for a temporary, interim use until BMC removes the track or December 31, 2026, whichever comes first.”

BMC is Boston & Maine Corporation, a subsidiary of CSX. The rail corridor, acquired by the city to make way for the Merrimack River Greenway Trail, was part of the former Boston & Maine Railroad.

Also on Monday, the council is scheduled to enter into an agreement with the state Department of Transportation to design and build a multi-use path, running from Sewalls Falls Road to the Boscawen town line, after the train tracks are removed.

The work will be part of creating the Greenway Trail to run a dozen miles through the city, connecting to the Northern Rail Trail at the Boscawen town line and the future Pembroke Rail Trail on the city’s southern border.

The council is slated to discuss appropriating $1.55 million for the Greenway work, including $1.23 million from the state Transportation Alternatives Program, with the rest taken from the city Impact Fee Funds and Recreation Reserve Funds.

The question of whether six miles of the corridor should be used for Scenic RailRiders or for a hiking and biking trail almost stymied the long-discussed Greenway plan until the City Council bought the rail corridor from CSX in February. As part of the sale, CSX plans to remove the steel rails, which are worth hundreds of thousands of dollars for recycling or reuse.

For now, Scenic RailRiders will go ahead with renting out two-person and four-person pedaled cars that people can use to travel on the rails for three miles from the starting point on Sewalls Falls Road, creating a 6.2-mile roundtrip. The business started in 2019 and has attracted considerable attention.

LeBlanc said he will open up Scenic RailRiders for reservations on Wednesday, April 15, with the first ride scheduled for May 16. He plans to continue into October and, like last year, run special holiday lights trips in December.