Railway lines are an urban trail-builder’s dream. They’re long, wide, and level. They’re routed between city centers and outlying com- munities, with a minimum of interruption by car traffic. And because they’re built on rights-of-way that often predate the highway system, they can harbor unique historical and ecological features—such as native plant species, undisturbed and thriving, that grow almost nowhere else.
By some accounts, there are more than 100,000 miles of abandoned rail line criss-crossing the coun- try—nearly 15,000 miles of which have already been converted into trails for pedestrians, cyclists, and even skiers. Urban rail-trails’ usage numbers are a compelling endorsement: two million visitors annual- ly on Boston’s Minuteman Trail, one million on Wash- ington, D.C.’s Capital Crescent Trail, and five million on New York City’s High Line, to name a few. In Chicago, The Trust for Public Land’s biggest project will trans- form nearly three miles of unused rail line into The 606, an elevated park and trail named for the portion of the city’s zip code that all residents share. After a decade of real-estate wrangling, community design meetings, and creative construction—including the whole- sale relocation of the Ashland Bridge—the nation’s most ambitious new rail-to-trail project is slated to open in June 2015. When complete, The 606 will connect six ground-level neighbor- hood parks, boosting access for communities on the city’s North- west Side, where green space is especially scarce. “The 606 will mean that my daughters can ride their bikes for 38 blocks safely above traffic,” says Huu Nguyen. Nguyen is a community advocate with the Quilombo Cultural Center, adjacent to the old rail line. “It will connect our family to diverse neighborhoods and people in an open and exciting way.”
In Minneapolis, regular snowplowing helps hardy cyclists make use of the Midtown Greenway rail-to-trail even in brutal Minnesota cold: a third of bike commuters report at least occasionally pedaling to work during the winter.
40 · LAND&PEOPLE · SPRING/SUMMER 2015
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