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The town of Hudson, Quebec, its places, people and businesses online.
Train Service, New Bike Path, Sandy Beach
Hudson Train Service Will Stay For the Near Future
While there have been lots of rumours that Hudson will finally lose its one train a day, especially if Rigaud decides not to keep its service, these are apparently unfounded. Even if Rigaud decides not to continue to pay for its share of the service and for the railbed maintenance that is required, trains from Vaudreuil could still make the run to Hudson and back without being parked here. Some residents think that the cancellation of the train is inevitable in the long term though and everyone agrees that the current situation, where Hudson and St. Lazare pay large amounts without getting corresponding service, is not a permanent solution.
One innovative idea making the rounds is to have a Rigaud to Vaudreuil shuttle service on existing track to meet Vaudreuil trains going into Montreal. It would effectively give Hudson residents several opportunities per day to go into Montreal and would not require the full train to make the journey to Rigaud. Whether this solution is cost-effective is still up in the air but CP used to run light diesel rail cars on low traffic lines and we used to see two or four of these occasionally on Sundays on the Hudson line many years ago. They didn't require a locomative since they were self-powered and were characterized by orange stripes on the ends of the cars. Since they are much lighter than locomotives they don't as heavy a track and some of the maintenance costs might be lower.
Perhaps, if such a shuttle service were run by the towns involved, they could get out of the AMT service area and stop paying the AMT usage fees. While this might not save the towns money, the service could be much more frequent and the towns would have a better control of the costs.
Mayor Promises New Bike Path along Cote St. Charles
The bike path which comes down Cote St. Charles and from St. Lazare will soon no longer end at the border of Hudson as it does currently. The town of Hudson is undertaking studies to extend the path right into the village, probably as far as the sidewalk opposite the Hudson high school.
The study will determine exactly where the path will run. St. Lazare simply widened the street on the west side and put a line down to mark the path. Even with few houses on the street, St. Lazare ran into problems with residents who didn't want the path along their property. If Hudson puts the path on the east side of Cote St. Charles the construction is likely to be quite complicated since there are many houses, cross streets and driveways. On the west side the Whitlock Golf course runs for most of the length where the bike path will be but there is a lot of brush and trees which would have to be cleared. Some residents think that cleaning up that side and putting in the path with a nice view over the golf links would be the ideal solution. In any case, the path should be ready for bike traffic by the end of the summer.
Sandy Beach Nature Trails in the Works
After the announcement of the Sandy Beach park and the publication of the plans for its development it remains to find the money and actually start clearing trails and building walkways. One initiative is seeking to do just that. The "Sandy Beach is for the Birds" project will auction off fifteen giant bird houses at an event on October 1, 2005. Smaller, more traditional bird houses will also be produced for the event but the large, three foot high units painted bright colours will be the stars of the show. Money raised will go to starting the development of the park.