So here I am at 5:00 PM Friday, sitting in my car in the humid 93 degree heat, counting bicycles. I must be crazy! Even Chennai India is 9 degrees cooler.
Three times a year, the state coordinates bike trail counts. The summer count is Thursday, Friday and Saturday, July 4-6. I decided to cover Friday evening, with the other ARRT volunteers taking Saturday.
We had skipped the last 3 counts, as the RT-85 construction project had the ARRT crossing all torn up. The trail is mostly returned to normal now.
RT-85/Washington Street is our favorite spot, meeting the three census requirements of (1) lots of parking, (2) a Duncan Donuts 100 feet north and (3) last but not least, more traffic than anywhere else on the trail! We get everything; bikes, baby carriages, joggers, walkers, skateboards and even roller skaters. Considering the heat, the 15-20 users per hour was decent.
Assabet River Rail Trail's Blog 