SUNDERLAND — The feasibility study for the Norwottuck North Shared-Use Path kicked off Tuesday evening, as representatives from the engineering and design firm Vanasse Hangen Brustlin (VHB) laid out the study’s roadmap to the Selectboard.

The study will determine the feasibility of implementing the Norwottuck North Shared-Use Path for walkers and cyclists, which would connect the Whately Park and Ride near Interstate 91’s Exit 35 to Meadow Street in Amherst. VHB will determine the preferred alignment of the path and a construction cost estimate.

In all, the study will be completed by the end of the fiscal year, June 30, 2025, according to VHB engineer Jim Czach, who led the discussion Tuesday evening. Results are expected to partner up with potential recommendations from the town’s village center visioning process, which recently wrapped up with a presentation last week.

“We’re trying to make the corridor more attractive to bicycling, walking and intermodal connection,” Czach said. “We want to make sure improvements planned for the village center will marry up to what we’re proposing with the shared-use path.”

The feasibility study is being paid through a $195,090 MassTrails grant, as well as a $76,840 match from Sunderland. While the project runs through Whately, Deerfield, Sunderland and Amherst, Sunderland was the lead town on the grant application.

With Tuesday serving as the kickoff meeting, few, if any, concrete details were set, but Czach said VHB is looking at a shared-use path that is a minimum of 10 feet wide with at least a 2-foot buffer to obstructions and a 5-foot buffer to the street. These measurements are based on the Massachusetts Department of Transportation’s (MassDOT) recommendations.

Additionally, VHB is looking to “minimize any new crossings” and to “connect to as many features/destinations” as possible.

The first order of business was to get Selectboard members’ take on whether the path should be on the west or east side of Route 116, with members leaning toward east. The planned connection in Amherst would begin on the eastern side of the street and most attractions along Route 116, such as the Cliffside apartment complex, Sugarloaf Frostie and parking at Mount Sugarloaf, are on the eastern side. The existing pedestrian sidewalk on the Sunderland Bridge is also on that side.

“If they have to cross 116, that’s a real hazard,” said Selectboard Chair Nathaniel Waring. “People who are going end to end prefer to stay on one side the entire time.”

There is a catch, though, as Waring noted the “little bit of sidewalk we do have currently is mostly” on the other side of Route 116.

Czach said VHB will “further evaluate” both the western and eastern sides of Route 116 to present the best case possible to MassDOT.

In terms of funding, Czach said VHB will also explore how the project can be broken down into segments because funding for a 6.6-mile trail is unlikely to come all at once.

“We’re looking at how this could possibly be segmented into multiple projects that could go for different types of state and federal funding,” Czach said.

Other work the company needs to do includes reaching out to the Highway Department, Conservation Commission and other town departments, according to Matt Chase of VHB, who was also presenting with Czach.

As the process moves forward, Waring said the town is very much ready to try to bring this project to fruition.

“We’re really looking forward to it,” Waring said. “It’s a great project and it’s a great thing for Sunderland.”

Chris Larabee can be reached at clarabee@recorder.com.