North Carolina Rail-Trails

North Carolina Rail-Trails works with communities across North Carolina to create trails for public use on abandoned rail corridors.

Rail-trails differ from other trails and greenways in several characteristics. The terrain for rail-trails is generally flat or gently sloped because the land was originally engineered for rail use. This makes rail-trails wonderful places to ride a bike and many are wheelchair accessible. Also, rail corridors are usually wide enough to accommodate many different types of trail use: biking, walking, jogging, horseback riding, dog walking, pogo-sticking … you get the idea.

Another positive attribute of a rail-trail is that it actually goes somewhere. Just as trains went from one community to the next, so does the rail-trail, creating a natural link between communities. Today, we can maintain these community links by utilizing existing rail corridors that are so perfectly suited for trails.

Does your community have an abandoned railroad? Would you like to have a safe place to play and exercise while preserving your community’s train heritage? Please contact NCRT if you would like us to help you create a rail-trail in your area.

Survey for Participants of 2012 Ales for Rail-Trails 5K Race
posted by curt on May 2, 2013

 We're about to start planning for the third Annual Ales for Rail-Trails 5K Race in October. To help us improve this year's event, we have developed a short survey to gather information on your reactions to the event including both pre-race and post-race activities and how you found about our event. If you participated in the 2012 Race, please take a few minutes to complete this short survey . We look forward to seeing you in the 2013 Ales for Rail Trails 5K in the Fall!

Spring 2013 Newsletter Available On-line
posted by curt on March 23, 2013

It's Spring and folks will be getting out to use rail-trails more and more. Our Spring Newsletter has an update on upcoming surface and signage  upgrades at the Thermal Belt Rail-Trail in Rutherford County, some news on progress on bridges for the Elkins & Allegheny Rail-Trail, plans for connnecting the Dunn-Erwin Rail-Trail to the River Park Trail and notes on the upcoming completion of the final section of the American Tobacco Trail. Members who have rquested hard copies should receive them in early April.

New Hope Railway Gets Steam Locomotive
posted by curt on February 18, 2013

The New Hope Railway, a small line operated by hobbyists southwest of Apex NC, has recently acquired an 85 year old steam locomotive from a group in Georgia. In earlier times the New Hope line provided freight service to Duncan, NC and to Durham via the corridor on which the American Tobacco Trail (ATT) now operates. The New Hope Railway offers short rides on its trains seasonally and is located only a few miles from the southern end of the ATT. A recent article in the Cary News tells more on the group's mission and latest acquisition.

New Rail-Trail in Atlanta Really Popular with Neighborhood Users
posted by curt on February 15, 2013

A recent article from the New York Times provides an interesting look at the positive reactions of citizens in a large metro area to a new rail-trail that promises to offer better connections to local transit as well as recreational opportunities and direct links to local parks. Two miles of trail opened recently and will be part of a long-term network that has been planned for over eight years. An earlier NCRT News article outlined the goals of this project.

Link to News Archive

To see all earlier NEWS items please go to our News Archives page.

We've added some new trail images to our Photo Gallery.