When it comes to collaborative public works projects, there are perhaps few more complicated to organize and execute than the urban biking-and-walking trail--especially if that trail winds its way through numerous counties and townships. That's exactly the situation of the
Manayunk Bridge path, which for years now has been an important missing link in the plan to create a mega-trail stretching all the way from the
John Heinz National Wildlife Refuge in Southwest Philly to
Pottsville.
But thanks to the efforts of a number of local community development corporations, as well as the
Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia and the
Schuylkill River Project, the city was recently awarded a $1.3 million grant to finish construction of the path along the old railroad bridge, which hasn't been operational since the 1980s.
According to Kay Sykora, director of the Schuylkill River Project, the planning and design phase will be complete in 18 months. Construction is expected to take an additional 12 months, barring any unforeseen roadblocks. If all goes well, bicyclists will be sailing across the Manayunk Bridge, which connects Philadelphia and Montgomery Counties, sometime during the summer or fall of 2013.
As Sykora explains it, much of the project's success was the result of positive collaboration between all the various agencies involved. "(Everyone) felt that this was a real trademark project, and that it was very symbolic in joining Montgomery County and Philadelphia County," she explained. "It's really a bridge that a large group of people are responsible for."
The $1.3 million grant was awarded as a part of PennDOT's
PCTI program, a Smart Transportation initiative that garnered a total of $24.7 million in federal stimulus funds for 41 different community-led construction projects statewide.
"Everyone's excited," adds Sykora, "because everyone loves a project of this kind. It's a feel-good project."
Source: Kay Sykora, Schuylkill River Project
Writer: Dan Eldridge
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