Sangamon Valley Trail
The Sangamon Valley Trail is a 5.5-mile (8.9 km) rail trail on the west side of Sangamon County in the U.S. state of Illinois. Skirting Springfield, Illinois, it extends from Centennial Park, on Springfield's southwest side, to Stuart Park on the same city's northwest side. It was constructed by a Sangamon County team in 2010-2011 at a cost of $3.8 million, and opened to the public on July 26, 2011.[1][2]
Future
The current Trail is a segment of a 38-mile (61.2 km) right-of-way that has been set aside for rail trail use. The entire right-of-way connects Girard, Illinois, on the south end, to Athens, Illinois, at the north end. The right-of-way spans the western half of Sangamon County in a north-south direction, and also traverses small sections of Macoupin County and Menard County.[1]
The right-of-way occupies an abandoned segment of the St. Louis, Peoria and North Western Railway, later consolidated into the Chicago and North Western Railroad. The primary metropolitan area served is the greater Springfield, Illinois metropolitan area.[3]
Population in the trail's service area in western Sangamon County is growing rapidly as of 2014[update].
References
