Bike trail loses $700,000 in federal funding

TOPSFIELD - Border to Boston bike trail supporters are scrambling to fill a $700,000 gap left following cuts made by the Federal Highway Administration last week.

Topsfield Rail Trail Committee chairman Joseph Geller says the cuts might be related to decreased gasoline tax revenues.

"The irony is that we're being encouraged to drive less and we're having to shut down a project that will provide links to public transportation," he said.

The 26-mile bike path was to have been built along an abandoned rail bed stretching from Danvers to Salisbury.

DAVID COGGER