A new town committee will be looking into the costs and feasibility of creating an off-road bike and pedestrian pathway adjacent to Shore Road.

At their Oct. 10 meeting, the Town Council voted to create the committee, which will include one town councilor, one member of the Conservation Commission, and seven citizens chosen by the council's appointments subcommittee.

The Shore Road Pathway Study Committee is an outgrowth of a recommendation made this spring by the town's Road Safety Working Group. One of the group's recommended projects is an off-road pathway between the Town Center and Fort Williams Park,

The group further recommended a committee first study the path project, "with sensitivity to the character of Shore Road and in collaboration with property owners abutting Shore Road."

"The vision is to create a preliminary plan of an off-road path adjacent to Shore Road," said Town Councilor Cynthia Dill, chairman of the Road Safety Working Group. "This is different from the greenbelt path."

Anne Swift-Kayatta, chairman of the appointments committee, said the town will be looking for residents of Shore Road and its side streets, as well as the community at-large, for the study committee.

When the work is done, the study committee will present to the council a recommended path layout, recommendations for path surfaces, recommendations for any mitigation needed and a cost estimate.

Funding for the committee during this fiscal year will come from the town's roadway/drainage account, with future funding to be determined during budget deliberations.

"This is a long-term project," said Dill. "It isn't a quick knee-jerk effort. Hopefully it's going to be a deliberative process by committee."

The town's newly adopted comprehensive plan also recommends a study committee for a path adjacent to Shore Road. The committee is listed as a step toward the goal of promoting road safety through sidewalks and bikeways, always considering the character of the town and its neighborhoods.