THUNDER BAY – A multi-use trail extension to be built next year will provide a direct connection to more than 20 kilometres of existing infrastructure across the city.
The province is chipping in $325,000 to help build an 850-metre trail on the Confederation College campus that will link the Parkdale and River Terrace neighbourhoods, as well as a connected path to the Intercity area and Chapples Park.
City mobility coordinator Adam Krupper said this will allow existing active transportation routes to connect together.
“When you talk about these isolated chunks of infrastructure our biggest challenges are making these connections because they usually require substantial capital,” Krupper said.
“People say they can’t get from A to B because there’s a significant gap in the middle. This was the biggest bang for the buck for the whole city.”
The project includes either building a new pedestrian bridge or widening the existing bridge on college campus across the Neebing-McIntyre Floodway.
The trail will run along the east side of Golf Links Road adjacent to the college and then connect to the Matson Trail on the other side of Harbour Expressway, which runs along the west side of the roadway towards River Terrace.
A high visibility crossing will also be included at the Golf Links Road and Harbour Expressway intersection, which will feature markings to show people the route to continue onto the trail.
The money comes from a two-year $10 million fund from the Ministry of Transportation to improve cycling infrastructure across the province.
MPP Bill Mauro (Lib., Thunder Bay-Atikokan) said the program helps boost outdoor recreation opportunies.
“It’s more about healthy living and a healthy lifestyles. It’s about trying to change habits,” he said. “I think there really is a built up demand right across the province, right across the country. People are looking to be outdoors as much as they can.”
City council still needs to sign a formal agreement with the province to provide funding for the remaining portion of the project costs.
Construction would begin in 2017.
