EASTAMPTON — The railroad company is long gone here, but the old track lines are pretty handy for creating nature trails like a new one Burlington County wants to create with $6 million in state money.
The contemplated trail would travel about four miles from Historic Smithville Park through Pemberton Township to Pemberton Borough. The idea is to mainly follow the old Pennsylvania Railroad right-of-way.
The 10-foot-wide trail would start at West Railroad Avenue in Smithville Park, move through Smith’s Woods, across Route 206, and through Pemberton Township.
A pedestrian- and bicycle-safe crossing on Route 206 is planned, but those details are not worked out.
Around Birmingham Road, the new trail would connect with the Pemberton Rail Trail, a 1.6-mile crushed-stone path to Hanover Street in Pemberton Borough.
The Pemberton Rail Trail also mainly shadows the railroad right-of-way, said county spokesman David Levinsky.
County commissioners agreed last week to apply for the grant, and the application is due in Trenton by next week. The grant would be for design work and construction.
The project already was reviewed and qualified by the New Jersey Department of Transportation and Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission, according to Levinsky.
“Burlington County already has one of the best trail networks in New Jersey with more than 50 miles of regional and interior parks trails,” Commissioner Director Felicia Hopson said. “So, we’re excited about this opportunity to expand our system with a new trail linking Smithville Park with the Pemberton Rail Trail in Pemberton Township.
The proposed pathway would be part of the Rancocas Creek Greenway Trail. The trail is envisioned to cover the 30-mile length of the creek from its headwaters in Pemberton to its terminus at the Delaware River.
The county has received more than $19.3 million in grants for trails, including the first, four-mile segment of the Rancocas Creek Greenway Trail. That portion runs between Amico Island Park in Delran and Pennington Park in Delanco.
Rancocas Creek Greenway’s first segment was completed in 2022. There is planning now for a two-mile extension from Pennington Park, across Route 130, to both Willingboro Lakes Park off Beverly-Rancocas Road in Willingboro and Rainbow Meadow Park in Delran. The extension will include a pedestrian-safe crossing of Route 130 and pedestrian safety improvements to the Route 130 Bridge in Delanco.
The U.S. Department of Transportation in 2024 gave the county $400,000 to study further safety measures for pedestrians and bicyclists.
Joe Smith is a N.E. Philly native transplanted to South Jersey 36 years ago, keeping an eye now on government in South Jersey. He is a former editor and current senior staff writer for The Daily Journal in Vineland, Courier-Post in Cherry Hill, and the Burlington County Times.
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