Quarterly News Items from AL Capehart

Granville County

The Surface Transportation Board (STB) granted Norfolk Southern (NS) a “continuance of service” of the Oxford to Clarksville rail line, although there has not been traffic on the rails in the past 18 years and pine trees are growing up between the ties. The county would like for NS to ask to request the STB to assign a Public Use Condition and an Interim Trail Use Certificate allowing for track and tie removal and the conversion to a trail or rail with trail. At the NC Rail Corridor Roundtable meeting on 9/28  corridor preservation for this line was dicussed. Oxford to Clarksville in Granville County is stymied by the legal issues of a greenway trail on the NS rail corridor and most especially the concept of rail with trail. A question was  posed as to whether NS would lease it to Granville County and request the Surface Transportation Board to assign an interim trail use condition.

Atlantic Coast Line Rail-Trail (Cumberland, Sampson, Pender & New Hanover Counties) – Fayetteville to Wilmington.

West Pender Rail Trail Alliance met September 25th in Burgaw. The adjacent property owners and the county commissioner reaction to the rail-trail proposal have caused the county planning department to withdraw its active participation with the Alliance.  Pender County Travel and Tourism continues its active support. Plans are for a fund raising bicycle ride (Battleship to Battleground) the USS NC, Wilmington, to Moore’s Creek Revolutionary Battleground, Currie - Pender County. The Cape Fear Cyclists and UNCW Environmental Club will help make it happen to raise money for the Alliance to incorporate and apply for qualification as a non-profit 501(c)(3) organization.

North Carolina Active Transportation Alliance. NCRT was present at their August 15th annual meeting in Charlotte, Nancy Pierce, Alison Carpenter, CR Townsend and AL Capehart. Nancy lead the bicycle ride after the meeting. Alison serves a chair of the NCATA.

Ecusta Trail – Hendersonville to Brevard- Henderson & Transylvania Counties. Has gotten good press which has enlivened the opposition. The Brevard Bike Path is now entering the Pisgah National Forest. The Petition is still on-line and continuing to add signatures. See picture of this verdant corridor in our photo gallery.