Montour Trail

Montour Trail. . , After abandonment of the railroad in 1984, the first public meeting to discuss creating a rail-trail in the rural Countryside south of Pittsburgh was held in 1989, attended by a core group of 15 people. Most of that core remain as trail volunteers., They formed the Montour Trail Council, which purchased much of the remaining railroad right of-way in 1991. MTC members envisioned a trail along the railbed that would stretch from Coraopolis to Clairton., Over the years, Council efforts were concentrated on acquiring funding and rights-of-way properties, joining trail communities, paving pathways, building trailheads and access areas, engineering or rehabilitating bridges, and marketing the trail to the public., The Council has received multiple awards for trail use and planning., The first section of trail was opened in Cecil Township in 1992. The next year added miles in Robinson and Moon Townships, with many more trail miles added in the years since then. Equal parts fundraising, trail construction and maintenance are accomplished with many hours of volunteer efforts., Annual memberships, donations and grants are a main source of monetary support to keep the trail operating., The Council also receives revenues from utility easements, shale gas deposits and a railroad line lease., The Montour Trail Council is an original member of the Allegheny Trail Alliance and has partnerships with other trails in the Pittsburgh region., More than 400,000 people use the Montour Trail each year., For info on memberships and donations, go to Montourtrail.org.