A side-by-side example of the 2020 plan and the 2024 plan for the Derry rail trail. (Courtesy of the Committee to Save the Derry Rail Trail Tunnel)
One of the defendants in a lawsuit brought to stop construction of what opponents call the “spaghetti loop” will have until Nov. 8 to respond to the plaintiffs’ claims, say court documents.
A request for an extension was submitted Sept. 24 by New Hampshire Department of Transportation Commissioner William Cass. He is being represented by New Hampshire Attorney General John Formella.
The extension was accepted the same day it was filed.
Cass stated in the request that the extension is to align his response deadline with the other two named defendants in the suit, Shailen Bhat, the Federal Highway Administration administrator, and Patrick Bauer, the Federal Highway Administration New Hampshire Division Administrator.
The lawsuit was filed originally on Aug. 26 in the U.S. District Court in Concord by the Committee to Save the Derry Rail Trail Tunnel, a local nonprofit, and Rails to Trails Conservancy, a nation-wide nonprofit that seeks to preserve historic rail trails.
The suit was brought forward because of changes made to the Derry rail trail plan that was initially proposed in 2020. The original plan would allow for an underpass to travel close to the historic Manchester and Lawrence Railroad path.
The two plaintiffs state that the current NHDOT plan, proposed in 2024, is not only unsafe to recreational users, including pedestrians, bikers, and people with disabilities, but also would violate Section 4 F of the Department of Transportation Act.
In that section, the act states land from historic sites of national, state, or local significance will not be used for transportation projects unless there is no alternative for the project and if the project minimizes harm to the historic site. According to both nonprofits, rail trails fall under historic land.
The 2024 plan, called the “spaghetti loop” by detractors, is a longer, more scenic route for hikers, according to the NHDOT during an informal meeting in September 2023.
The loop is a replacement for the tunnel plan that was created in 2020 as a cost-saving measure. The NHDOT estimated the project would save approximately $770,000, and the town would save money on routine maintenance, as of September 2023. Another reason NHDOT has chosen the loop plan is because the area is prone to flooding.
In a letter written to Town Administrator David Caron in November 2022, the 2020 plan of an underground tunnel would have caused more drainage issues for the town overall. The letter was written by Cass when he was the assistant commissioner at NHDOT.
In the same letter, NHDOT said the plan is compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act.
The two rail trail organizations asked for the defendants to be named in violation of the Section 4 F of the Department of Transportation Act, for the 2024 plan for the rail trail be vacated, and a permanent stop to the project if it continues to violate the Department of Transportation Act.
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