
filed under: trails as transportation
Act now to get your shovel-ready trail project into your Representative's earmark process.
The reemergence of earmarks in the infrastructure and appropriations process in Congress is creating huge opportunity for trail projects that are ready to go.
Do you manage a trail project that is ready to go within the next 5 years, and is in need of funding. The next two weeks provide an opportunity for you to reach out to your representative to ask for your project to be included in their priority list.
The U.S. House of Representatives Transportation and Infrastructure (T&I) Committee has issued guidance about earmarks available for local transportation priorities. The committee is inviting all members of Congress to submit specific “Member Designated Projects” for inclusion in the surface transportation reauthorization currently being drafted. As such, the timeline is very short, and projects will only be accepted between April 1 and April 16. (Note that this process is separate and distinct from the House Appropriations Committee earmarks.)
Watch the March 31 Webinar put on by Rails-to-Trails Conservancy on how you can use the earmark process to promote investments in trails and active transportation networks in your community.
In order for your project to be considered by the Transportation & Infrastructure Committee, you need to act fast by reaching out to your representative ASAP to find out what their process is for adding projects to their priority list and asking them to submit it to the T&I Committee by the April 16 deadline. Your project will need to meet the following criteria:
You can also consider adding your project to the Trails Move People Shovel-ready Project Database to get it added to future advocacy around this effort.
Add Your Project to the Trails Move People Shovel-ready Project Database
Trail projects will compete against other transportation projects (i.e. roads and bridges), however, they MAY be very competitive because:
Published March 2021
Trails and Resilience: Review of the Role of Trails in Climate Resilience and Emergency Response
Trails are often overlooked as elements of essential infrastructure for a resilient transportation system.1 In emergencies where other transportation facilities are shut down or inaccessible, people may use trails to get where they need to go.
National Park Service − Rivers, Trails and Conservation Assistance Program
This publication is designed to inform the reader about the services provided by the National Park Service – Rivers, Trails and Conservation Assistance Program.
Recreational Trails Program Highlight: Tennessee State Parks Tires to Trails Program
Tennessee State Parks Win National Award for Tires to Trails Program
Recreational Trails Program Highlight: Brighton Park, Ohio
Brighton Park, formerly the Henninger Landfill, was a construction and demolition debris landfill in the Old Brooklyn neighborhood of Cleveland that ceased operation in the 1980s.