Authored By: The Circuit Trails | June 30, 2016

June, which happens to be National Trails Month, has been a great month for trail development in New Jersey.  Earlier this month, Burlington County cut the ribbon on the Circuit Trails’ newest trail segment, a three-mile section of the Kinkora Trail.  Also in June, new funding from the DVRPC Regional Trails Program and New Jersey Department of Transportation’s Regional Transportation Alternative Program was announced.  The funding will help advance more than 20 miles of new trails and bike lanes with more than $8.5 million in funding. 

DVRPC Phase IV Regional Trails Program Grant Awards

At the June 2016 meeting, with the help of 83 public comments (thank you!), DVRPC voted to approve all six New Jersey trail projects that were up for consideration, moving forward an additional 14.3 miles of Circuit Trails with $1,259,820 in funding. Each of the Circuit projects were developed in conjunction with their respective county planning partners and local sponsors.

Here is a snapshot of the projects which will be funded through DVRPC’s Regional Trails Program with support from the William Penn Foundation:

1. Trenton Wellness Loop – $195,000 was awarded to D&R Greenways Land Trust for the construction of 1.2 miles of trail in Trenton, Mercer County
2. D&R Canal, Delaware River Heritage Trail Gap – $110,000 was awarded to D&R Greenways Land Trust for the design of 3 miles of trail in Trenton, Mercer County
3. Rancocas Creek Greenway – $300,000 was awarded to Burlington County for the design and engineering of 3.5 miles of new trail in Delanco, Riverside and Delran townships, Burlington County
4. Cooper River Trail, Pub Connector – $37,820 was awarded to Camden County for the design and engineering of a trail to close a 0.1 mile gap in Pennsauken, Camden County
5. Gloucester Township Bike Path – $217,000 was awarded to Gloucester Township for the design and engineering of 1.5 miles in Gloucester Township, Camden County
6. Harrison Trail – $400,000 was awarded to Gloucester County for the design and engineering of 5 miles of new trail in Harrison Township, Gloucester County

New Jersey Department of Transportation’s Regional Transportation Alternative Program

On June 10, NJDOT announced funding for four new trail projects through its Regional Transportation Alternative Program. The program will provide $7,320,000 to advance walking and biking infrastructure in the Circuit Trails region of New Jersey (part of $12,627,000 awarded statewide).  The projects will construct 8.2 miles of new Circuit Trails (5.7 miles of off-road trail and 2.5 miles on-road) and enhance another 1.6 miles.

The following projects were selected for funding with unobligated Transportation Enhancement funds in our region:

1. Delaware River Heritage Trail, Route 130 Bypass – $2,320,000 was awarded for the construction of approximately 3.5 miles of off-road, multi-use trail and about 1.5 miles of on-road sharrows in Burlington County.
2. Rancocas Creek Greenway, Amico Island to Pennington Park – $2,900,000 was awarded to construct a total of 2.2 miles of off-road, multi-use trail along with about 1 mile of sharrows and bike lanes in Burlington County.
3. Cooper River Park (Access Improvements) – $600,000 was awarded for Camden County to construct and stripe 1.6 miles of bike lanes in both directions along North Park Drive and install ADA-compliant curb ramps and stripe crosswalks for improved access.
4. Washington Township and Monroe Township Bikeway – $1,500,000 was awarded to connect James Atkinson Park and Washington Lake Park in Washington Township with the existing Gloucester County Multi-Purpose Trail in Monroe Township. This project will construct/stripe a total of about 5.75 miles of new bike lanes in both directions.

We love to see partners across New Jersey working to advance trail development and the expansion of the Circuit Trails across the entire region.  Stay tuned for the future groundbreakings and ribbon cuttings of these new trail segments!

Map courtesy of the Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia. To explore the map in more detail, click here.