Resource Library:

Trail Networks Design

Subcategories • Trails as TransportationClosing Trail System Gaps



published Jan 2022

Benchmarking Bike Networks

by League of American Bicyclists

This report summarizes guidance and best practices to create safer bicycle facilities and connect them into networks that allow more people to safely bike to more places within and throughout communities.


posted Jan 5, 2024

Community Driven: How Engagement Guides the Vision and Planning of a Community Wide Trail Network

With an emphasis on community wide trail networks, the best practices explored in this session will better equip professionals and community members toward creating vibrant, inclusive, and sustainable communities through trail development.


posted Dec 20, 2023

Six Steps to Build a TrailNation™

This webinar will highlight the six actionable strategies for building trail networks, as noted in Rails to Trails Conservancy’s TrailNation™ Playbook.


published Oct 2023

Making Transportation Planning Applicable in Tribal Communities Research Study: Final Report

by Federal Highway Administration

The Federal Highway Administration’s (FHWA) Office of Tribal Transportation (OTT) planning staff have observed two challenges in Tribal transportation planning: (1) that existing planning analysis tools do not always align with Tribal community context and needs and (2) it is not always clear what benefits planning provides to transportation project selection and delivery in Tribal communities.


published Nov 2023

Tribal Development of Trails and Other Dedicated Pedestrian and Bicycle Infrastructure

This white paper provides information and resources for Tribes, Tribal trails and active transportation advocates, and agencies that may partner with Tribes on trail projects including Federal and State agencies, MPOs, county and local governments, and community organizations.


posted Dec 13, 2023

Rails to Trails Conservancy's TrailNation™ Playbook

by Rails to Trails Conservancy

Rails to Trails Conservancy's TrailNation™ Playbook brings the decades of experience building trail networks across the country to a resource of case studies, best practices and tools for trail network development on a local and national level.


published Dec 2016

Small Town and Rural Multimodal Networks

by Federal Highway Administration

The Small Town and Rural Multimodal Networks report is a resource and idea book intended to help small towns and rural communities support safe, accessible, comfortable, and active travel for people of all ages and abilities.


published Jun 2022

Advancing Trails to Support Multimodal Networks

by Pedestrian and Bicycle Information Center

This info brief provides a fresh look at the current state of practice for trail development, reflecting new research and showing the growing applications of trails in every type of environment and community.


published Jan 2020

How to Build Safer Streets Quickly and Affordably

by Alta Planning + Design, California Bicycle Coalition (CalBike)

The California Bicycle Coalition (CalBike) and Alta Planning + Design are excited to share this Quick-Build Guide for quickly and inexpensively creating safe spaces on our streets for people to travel by bike, on foot, on a scooter, by skateboard, or by any other low-impact, low-cost mode of transportation.


posted Sep 26, 2023

Safe Routes to Parks

by National Recreation and Park Association (NRPA)

Adults living within a half mile of a park visit parks and exercise more often, but according to the 2014 State Indicator Report on Physical Activity, less than 38 percent of the U.S. population lives within a half mile of a park.