That's well argued, but for the Malden path (Northern Strand Community Trail, a.k.a. Bike to the Sea) I've seen way too many counter-examples to take it seriously. Sounds like the person rode it once, and generalized a little ambitiously. There's a lot more to be said about that path, some of it having to do with different surfaces in different towns, some of it having to do with the political evolution of the city of Lynn, but from where I sit (frequent user, lots of observational samples), calling it a failure is a howling counterfactual.
rod