Back in April, the Capital Trails Coalition released the National Capital Trail Network (seen above) impact report which showed that a billion dollar investment in trails would pay off with over $2.4 Billion in savings PER YEAR.
This report was completed AFTER the Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments officially endorsed the Capital Trails Coalition's (CTC) National Capital Trail (NCT) Network (seen above* or in an interactive version here), but the benefits highlighted absolutely informed that decision. Interested parties should read the whole report because I'm not going to repeat it all here, but even if you think they're way overstating the benefits (and I don't), it's still got to be a net gain
The NCT represents the product of a multi-year effort led by WABA and Rails-to-Trails; and including dozen's of other organizations and advocates. The CTC has been slowing building to wide acceptance of the NCT as the key response to their goal to connect the region by trails. It doesn't lack for ambition. It envisions trails stretching across the greater Washington region, from Frederick, Md., to Prince William County, Va., that would expand the amount of off-road bicycle and pedestrian pathways to 1,400 miles.
The extensive trail system would more than double the size of the existing network by adding 755 miles to the current 645 miles of trails
And they're not stopping with the plan. Since completing it, the CTC has been working to identify the trails that could most benefit from an advocacy push and then working to get them across the finish line. One of those was the long-stalled South Capitol Street Trail which recently got funding in Mayor Bowser's new budget.
The NCT network, if built out, would finally get bike facilities to the place advocates have been trying to get them to for over 100 years and the CTC should be proud of the way that they've moved a plan that would have been laughed at 20 years ago into something serious policy makers can support.
*An alternative version of this map, excluding Frederick and Charles Counties in Maryland; and Loudoun and Prince William Counties in Virginia shows up in the impact report.
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