More than 9 miles of trail to be improved
Upgrades are planned for the northern portion of the Wallkill Valley Rail Trail to improve access and increase safety.
The $1 million improvement project will focus on the 9.5-mile stretch of the Wallkill Valley Rail Trail in the towns of Rosendale and Ulster, beginning at Cragswood Road in New Paltz and ending at Route 32 in the city of Kingston.
According to a press release announcing the plan, the work will improve overall public access to a portion of the trail protected by the Open Space Institute and Wallkill Valley Land Trust; will establish additional safety measures for residents and visitors; and will reinforce the Wallkill Valley Rail Trail’s inclusion as part of the Empire State Trail.
“The northern portion of the Wallkill Valley Rail Trail has some of the most diverse and engaging landscapes of the entire 22-mile trail,” Christie DeBoer, executive director of the Wallkill Valley Land Trust, said in a prepared statement. “These improvements will help to create a much more enjoyable and safe experience for users of the trail who enjoy it in each of the four seasons while making access easier.”
The plan calls for resurfacing the trail, rehabilitating three small bridges, and removing invasive species and excess vegetation to improve drainage. The project also will improve safety through improved road crossings and other trail signage to increase trail visibility, the press release stated.
At the Binnewater Road and Rockwell Lane trailheads, planned upgrades include improved grading to more gently slope entrance ramps, and the installation of detectable, tactile pavers at each road crossing, which will alert people who are visually impaired that they are about to enter or
leave a trail crossing and provide for more universal accessibility at the access points.
The work is scheduled to begin in mid-July and be completed around midOctober.
Sections of the trail might be closed during construction periods on weekdays, but the entire trail will remain open on weekends.
Information about the “rolling trail closures” will be posted on the Wallkill Valley Land Trust website (wallkillvalleylt.org) and on its social media sites. Trail users are encouraged to check the site for the latest construction updates.
The Wallkill Valley Rail Trail is a 22-mile trail and linear park that runs along the former Wallkill Valley railroad corridor through the towns of Gardiner, New Paltz, Rosendale and Ulster.
The northern sections of the trail are part of the 750-mile Empire State Trail, a bike and walking path that will run from New York City to Canada and from Albany to Buffalo.
The local improvement project is being managed by the Open Space Institute in partnership with Wallkill Valley Land Trust and is funded with grants from the New York State Environmental Protection Fund and the New York Office of Parks, Recreation, and Historic Preservation’s Recreation Trails Program, with matching funds from the Butler Conservation Fund and Open Space Institute.