Success Stories

Vermilion River Regional Greenway in Minnesota | Photo by TrailLink user travistschepen

Tom Petri Awards Honor 13 Outstanding Trail Projects and Programs in 2021

Posted 11/11/21 by Rails-to-Trails Conservancy in Policy, Success Stories | Tagged with Champions, Federal, Funding, Maintenance and Volunteers, Motorized Use, Recreational Trails Program, State and Federal Programs, Success Stories, Transportation Alternatives

This week, the Coalition for Recreational Trails (CRT) honored this year’s recipients of the Tom Petri Recreational Trails Program Annual Achievement Awards, including twelve projects and a state recreational trails program. The awards—honoring former U.S. Representative Tom Petri (WI)—specifically recognize outstanding use of Recreational Trails Program (RTP) funds, which have historically supported states in developing and maintaining recreational trails and trail-related facilities around the country.

42nd Street Slow Street in Oakland, California | Photo by Ben Kaufman

What’s Ahead for the Movement to Create Safe Outdoor Space in Every Neighborhood

Posted 08/02/21 by Christina Sturdivant Sani in America's Trails | Tagged with Demand for Trails, Encouraging Trail Use, Mode Shift, Success Stories, Trail Communities, Transportation Alternatives, Walkability and Bikeability

An analysis of 31 trail counters for the week of March 16–22 found a nationwide trail usage increase of nearly 200% from that same week in 2019. It was clear that the demand for safe spaces to be active outside was far exceeding supply. The organization used this data as the driver for a petition that advocated for cities and towns to close streets to vehicle traffic (which had dropped substantially due to mandatory lockdowns), creating more places for people to walk, bike and roll at a safe distance from one another. In the transportation world, this is known as the Open Streets movement.

Three Rivers Heritage Trail in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania | Photo by Jake Lynch

New USDOT Report Provides 25 Years of Lessons Learned for Rails-with-Trails

Posted 06/25/21 by Kelly Pack in America's Trails | Tagged with Capital Trails Coalition, Circuit Trails, Federal, Rail-with-Trail, Success Stories, TrailNation, Walkability and Bikeability

The U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) released Rails-with-Trails: Best Practices and Lessons Learned—a long-awaited update to its first release, published in 2002. Offering in-depth insights on the design, development, operations and benefits of rails-with-trails in America, the report has served as an authoritative resource for trail builders for nearly two decades.

John Ernest Berry III on the Palouse to Cascades State Park Trail in Washington State in August 2019 during a five-day trip with colleague and friend Bob Myrick | Photo by Bob Myrick

Five Days and 100 Miles: A Trip of a Lifetime Across the Cascades (A Memoire)

Posted 11/09/20 by Sue Nicholson in Trail Use, America's Trails | Tagged with Biking, People with Disabilities, Success Stories, Trail Destinations, Trail Use Tips, Washington

John became a staunch advocate for wear-a-helmet programs after the accident that would change his life. While bicycling downhill, a car pulled in front of him—resulting in a collision in which he was propelled through a windshield at 38 miles an hour. He was not wearing a helmet. As a result of the accident, he suffered a brain injury that caused severe short-term memory loss, speech and vision problems, and partial paralysis on his left side. He walks with a cane.

Opening Day for Trails 2019 on the W&OD in Virginia | Photo courtesy Rails-to-Trails Conservancy

The Results Are In: Rails-to-Trails’ 2019 Member and Supporter Survey

Posted 04/17/19 by Ben Carter in Taking Action | Tagged with RTC in Action, Success Stories, TrailNation

Thank you to everyone who submitted a response to Rails-to-Trails Conservancy’s (RTC’s) 2019 member and supporter survey. In total, we received more than 8,000 responses—wow! The invaluable insight collected in the survey helps RTC prioritize work for the coming year and into the future. Here are the results!

Baltimore, Maryland | Photo by Side A Photography

Protecting Trails in 2018: Five Ways We Mobilized in Communities This Year

Posted 11/15/18 by Amy Kapp, Brandi Horton in America's Trails, Building Trails, Policy, Taking Action, Success Stories, Health and Wellness | Tagged with Baltimore Greenway Trails Coalition, BATC, Best Of, Case Studies, Community Events, Corridors and Railbanking, Demand for Trails, Equity, Federal, Funding, Health and Active Living, IHTC, Legal Issues, Local Organizing, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rock Island, Route of the Badger, RTC in Action, State and Federal Programs, Success Stories, Tourism , Tourism and Economic Development, Tourism and Economic Stimulus, Trail Businesses, Trail Communities, Trail Destinations, TrailNation, TrailsTransform, Transportation Alternatives, Transportation and Health, Urban Pathways, Walkability and Bikeability, Washington, Wisconsin

All across the country—from the great redwoods of California, to the trestles of Missouri, to the stream valleys and neighborhoods of Baltimore, Maryland—Rails-to-Trails Conservancy (RTC) and the national trail community put itself on the front lines to protect and defend trails in 2018. Here are five ways we mobilized in communities this year.

Urban Tilth community garden | Photo courtesy Urban Tilth

These Farm Markets and Gardens Are Inspiring Health on America's Trails

Posted 08/09/18 by Amy Kapp in America's Trails | Tagged with Baltimore Greenway Trails Coalition, BATC, Caracara, Featured Magazine Articles, Health and Active Living, Success Stories, Tourism , Tourism and Economic Development, Tourism and Economic Stimulus, Trail Businesses, Trail Communities, Trail Destinations, TrailNation, Transportation and Health, Walkability and Bikeability

What’s better than a farmers’ market or community garden for providing locally grown food and encouraging good eating? Why, a market or garden next to a trail, of course! Here are three that are leading the charge for food equity, healthy lifestyles and social interaction in America’s underserved communities.

Elizabeth River Trail | Photo by TrailLink user krmurphy

Rails-to-Trails Conservancy Reflects on Its 32nd Year As America’s Voice for Trails

Posted 06/12/18 by Rails-to-Trails Conservancy in America's Trails, Building Trails, Success Stories | Tagged with Baltimore Greenway Trails Coalition, Best Of, Caracara, Celebrating 30 Years, Connected Systems, Facts and FIgures, Florida, Funding, Hall of Fame, History Happened Here, IHTC, Louisiana, Miami LOOP, Missouri, Nebraska, Rock Island, Route of the Badger, RTC in Action, State and Federal Programs, Success Stories, Texas, Trail Communities, Trail Destinations, TrailNation, TrailsTransform, Walkability and Bikeability, Why Use Trails?, Wisconsin

Here’s just a quick snapshot of our successes in 2017. To learn more about our work, download our FY 2017 Annual Report.

Erie Lackawanna Trail | Photo by Eric Allix Rogers

Indiana's Erie Lackawanna Trail

Posted 03/16/18 by Laura Stark in America's Trails | Tagged with Best Of, Community Events, Connected Systems, Demand for Trails, Encouraging Trail Use, Health and Active Living, Heritage and Restoration, History Happened Here, Indiana, Success Stories, Trail Communities, Trail Destinations, Trail of the Month, Walkability and Bikeability

Northwest Indiana’s Erie Lackawanna Trail offers an experience of beautiful contrasts. The region boasts sandy dunes, a glimmering Great Lake and windswept prairies, but also has a rich industrial and railroad heritage, some of the largest cities in the state, and the urbanization and cultural vibrancy that comes with its close proximity to Chicago. The diversity and bounty of these surroundings is well matched by the area’s growing system of interconnected multi-use trails that’s allowing near-seamless people-powered transportation between these natural and manmade assets. The nearly 18-mile Erie Lackawanna Trail alone connects to or is in close range of half dozen other trails.

Hudson River Valley Greenway, a segment of the developing Empire State Trail in New York | Photo by Scott Stark

State Policy Snapshot: A Look at Trail Funding and Advocacy in 2017 and Beyond

Posted 03/01/18 by Andrew Dupuy in Policy, Success Stories | Tagged with BATC, California, Caracara, Circuit Trails, Demand for Trails, Facts and FIgures, Florida, Funding, IHTC, Local Organizing, Miami LOOP, New York, Ohio, State and Federal Programs, Success Stories, Tennessee, TrailNation, TrailsTransform

Rails-to-Trails Conservancy monitors state legislative houses across the country to look for opportunities to advocate for new and innovative funding programs—as well defend and support trail funding under attack. And in 2017, RTC helped pass more than $103 million in recurring funding and more than $238 million in one-time funds for trails, walking and biking in states around the country.

Great Shasta Rail Trail | Photo by Christina Schmidlin with Hellikon, courtesy Great Shasta Rail Trail Association

A View From … The National Trails System

Posted 01/03/18 by Laura Stark in America's Trails, Success Stories | Tagged with Best Of, California, Connected Systems, Demand for Trails, Ecology and Environment, Encouraging Trail Use, Federal, History Happened Here, Legal Issues, Maryland, New York, North Dakota, Oregon, Pennsylvania, Success Stories, Tourism , Trail Destinations, Trails of the World, Virginia, Walkability and Bikeability, Washington, Wild and Wonderful, Wisconsin

In 2018, we celebrate the 50th anniversary of the National Trails System Act, which provided an incredible legacy for all Americans. Five of these iconic American experiences are listed below along with rail-trails that weave in and around them.

Volunteers on Montour Trail | Photo courtesy Montour Trail Council

5 Feel-Good Stories of Amazing Trail Volunteers

Posted 10/11/17 by Laura Stark in America's Trails, Taking Action, Success Stories | Tagged with Community Events, Indiana, Maintenance and Volunteers, Nebraska, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, Success Stories, Trail Destinations, Washington

I’ve had the pleasure of sharing more than 100 trail stories with RTC members over the years—and have been awed, inspired and impressed by the tireless work of trail advocates and volunteers too many times to count. Below are just a few of these—and I can’t wait to discover more.