The Village of Jonesville has acquired abandoned railroad lines from the Michigan Department of Transportation in hopes of creating a scenic rail trail for its citizens.
Tim McLean, Jonesville’s Assistant to the Village Manager said that the intent of the rail trail is to, “increase walkability in the community.”
The process of planning a rail trail has been long. Jonesville has been working with the Michigan state government since 2007. In 2012, Jonesville finally purchased the MDOT owned lines with the help of an MDOT grant. After more grants are awarded and a construction company is selected, the Village hopes to build the trail in two phases.
Phase one will begin at the intersection of West Carleton Rd (M99) and Gaige Street in Hillsdale. From there, the trail will go along the Saint Joseph River across Chicago Street to an old railroad bridge in Jonesville.
Phase two, which is still in the planning stages, will go from the then remodeled railroad bridge to the North Country Trail. Connection to the North Country Trail will connect the Jonesville Trail to a large network of trails that run throughout Michigan and the northern United States.
Earlier this year, Jonesville finished plans for phase one of the project and applied for a Transportation Alternatives Program grant from the Department of Natural Resources. TAP grants for the DNR are awarded to projects that create non-motorized paths, streetscapes, and preserve transportation facilities to enhance Michigan’s transportation system and provide a safe alternative to main roads.
If the grant is awarded to the village, construction on the rail trail could begin within a year, but according to McLean, phase one won’t be complete until at least 2016. The roughly $400,000 development cost will be split between the DNR and Jonesville. DNR grants will cover 74 percent and matching village funds will cover the remaining 26 percent.
According to the Rails-To-Trails Conservancy group, there are nearly 20,000 miles of rail trails in the United States today. The proposed Jonesville Rail Trail will join that trend, offering a scenic walking, jogging, and biking path for the community.
“It gives them a safe non-motorized transportation alternative [to the Hill-Jo Trail],” McLean said. The Hill-Jo Trail is the path along West Carleton Rd that runs three and half mile from the Baw Beese Trail to West Chicago road in Jonesville.
When finished, the trail that runs parallel to the Hill-Jo trail and M99, will have a completely paved, ten-foot-wide path that is handicapped accessible. McLean hopes residents will utilize the trail as part of an initiative to make the Village easier to navigate by walking.
Jonesville Village Manager Jeffrey Gray also has high hopes for the trail and believes it will help Jonesville’s economy.
“A benefit of adding a biking trail near downtown, [is] creating a little bit of economic development,” Gray said.
In addition to increasing walkability and economic development, the trail also offers access to more fishing opportunities along the Saint Joseph River. McLean is confident that, when finished, the trail will be used heavily by people in the community and others regionally because of the trails connection with the Hill-Jo trail as well as North Country Trail.