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Study: Trail from Cleveland to Pittsburgh could be economic boost

PLANNING — With a new bridge under construction, the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy proposes incorporating the Market Street Bridge into the Cleveland-to-Pittsburgh trail corridor. (Photo by Linda Harris)

STEUBENVILLE — Finishing the 200-plus mile Cleveland-to-Pittsburgh trail corridor could bring the Tri-State Area a much-needed economic jolt, the Rails-to-Trails conservancy suggests in a new study released this week.

The 89-page feasibility study says the potential impact on local communities “is massive, with more than 221,000 people living within a short half-mile of the corridor.” The study outlines the “vision” for the corridor, as well as the opportunities, challenges and costs associated with its completion, the conservancy said.

“Even beyond local communities, this part of the country is accessible to a vast number of people: Nearly 14 million people live within 100 miles of the C2P corridor.

“Amazing natural beauty and cultural resources are already driving a robust tourism industry. In 2017, $44 billion was generated from tourism in Ohio, $43.3 billion in traveler spending was generated in Pennsylvania and $4.1 billion annual direct spending from tourism was generated in West Virginia,” the report stated.

“The completion of this trail corridor certainly has the potential to add significant economic opportunities for the communities along its route.”

When it’s done, the C2P corridor will feed into a 1,500-plus mile multi-use trail stretching across 51 counties in Ohio, West Virginia, Pennsylvania and New York. It’s one of eight mega corridors that comprise the Industrial Heartland Trails Coalition’s regional vision to “leverage a burgeoning trail economy to deliver new opportunities to the people who live along its route,” the conservancy said.

About 146 miles of C2P will tie into the 3,700-mile Great American Rail-Trail, the nation’s first cross-country multi-use trail, between Washington, D.C. and the state of Washington. There’s no vehicular traffic on the Great American Rail-Trail, so enthusiasts can walk or bike its entire length.

Eric Oberg, director of the Midwest Region, Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, expects the completed C2P trail to bring “historic opportunities.”

“You’re looking at 200-plus miles of potential trail corridor,” Oberg said. “Seventy-five percent of the corridor is already down on the ground. Eventually it will be between 218 and 228 miles (long), depending on the final layout.”

There are gaps in the trail, however — areas in between two constructed trail sections. Currently, there’s a 28.4 mile gap between Jewett and the Ohio River in Steubenville, and a 4.2 mile gap on the West Virginia side between the Panhandle Trail and the Ohio River.

The logical connector, the conservancy points out, would be the Market Street Bridge, which it described as “aging into obsolescence.” It said the new bridge under construction “may open an opportunity.”

“If the Market Street bridge is decommissioned, it is possible that the bridge would require only minor upgrades to handle bicycle and pedestrian traffic, pending a full engineering study of the bridge’s structural soundness,” the report stated. “Because the potential trail along the Ohio River would be well below the surface of the Market Street Bridge, a structure would need to be built to bring trail users down from the bridge to the riverbank while also clearing the active Norfolk Southern rail line that runs along the Ohio River. The trail could then head north to parallel the Ohio River until reaching Weirton. This segment is a proposed extension of the Brooke Pioneer Trail, a spur that will connect to the corridor from the south.”

Once to Weirton, the conservancy proposed a route that would either follow Freedom Way to Main Street “via a two-way bike path occupying the westernmost lane of traffic” to Walnut Street, then tie in with an off-road corridor or parallel Military Drive past the Brooke-Hancock County Veterans Memorial Park northward using an abandoned railroad bridge, paralleling Harmon Creek for three-quarters of a mile to a proposed on-road corridor.

Either way, the conservancy says the trail should connect to the Panhandle Trail at McKims Ridge Road.

According to the conservancy, constructing that 4.2 mile section of trail could cost anywhere from $2 million to $2.5 million for asphalt, or up to $700,000 for crushed stone.

On the Ohio side, the conservancy proposes the trail to “follow creeks and pass through forests” from Jewett to Steubenville, and would showcase the Jefferson Soil and Water Conservation District’s Hellbender preserve project. That side is projected to cost $2.4 million to $5 million.

Oberg said the study was meant “to lay out a vision, document what’s on the ground and look at options to fill in gaps.”

“But it’s also a playbook, with recommended actions for every county in the corridor and what it will take to move from inspirational vision to (reality),” he said.

“It doesn’t just document what’s needed to build out gaps. It also documents existing trails on the ground and long-term needs for maintenance of existing trails.”

Oberg said they’re “not at the beginning, not at the end.”

“We’re at a great place to look at what is out there, look at the legacy left to us by 30 years of visionaries and trail burners,” he said.

Kent Spellman, founder of the West Virginia Development Hub, pointed to the economic jolt trails have on other communities.

“Trails are much more than a place to walk, run and bike, important drivers for community and economic development,” Spellman said. “Access to trails is at the top of the list for people looking at places to live. You can build the economy through tourism for sure, but also make communities a place where businesses and people want to locate.”

Collaboration, Spellman said, “is critical to success.”

The National Park Service’s Andrea Ireland said the ground the study covered “further demonstrates how important trails have the potential to be.”

Oberg credited “political buy-in from the top down, all the way through counties, agencies, a network of local non-profits and park departments.”

“It’s 75 percent complete because people have cared for 30 years to do hard work and they continue to care,” he said. “It’s a testament to them.”

“Gaps are being filled, there are catalytic projects ready to go right now,” he said, citing the potential of JSWCD’s hellbender reserve, “an amazing habitat project.” He said Steubenville’s riverfront redevelopment could have trail aspects that might help fill in the gap.

“The hardest projects in the corridor are 75 percent done,” he said. “I’m not going to say this is the easiest part. The remaining bit of corridor is going to be difficult, but we’ve got supportive leadership at the state, local and regional level who understand the value the corridor is going to bring. I really believe the vision this study lays out will help coalesce that support and help our partners fill the gaps in.”

“It’s huge for our region,” JSWCD’s Mark Nelson said. “Many communities would love to have the opportunity to connect to other cities as well as be a part of a national trail system. The health, recreational and economic benefits will be very appreciated here.”

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