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Cardinal Greenway, Inc.
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is a non-profit organization of volunteers dedicated to
creating and maintaining the Cardinal Greenway Trail, the longest
rails-to-trails project in Indiana.
Cardinal Greenway takes its name from the traditional definition of a
greenway as "linear open space, linking parks, nature reserves, cultural and
historical sites with each other and with populated areas for use by
non-motorized travelers." The Cardinal was the name of the last passenger
train to regularly travel our rail-trail, deriving its name from the state
bird of all five of the states which crossed on the
Chicago/Cincinnati/Washington line. Our trail name Cardinal Greenway becomes
a small but meaningful tribute to the golden age of American railroads.
The Rails-to-Trails movement began in 1965; twenty years later the national
Rails-to-Trails Conservancy was founded. In 1991 Congress passed the
Intermodal Surface Transportation Efficiency Act (ISTEA) declaring that a
portion of revenues from gas taxes must be used to develop modes of
transportation other than highways. This included preservation of abandoned
railway corridors for development of bicycle and pedestrian facilities. The
800th trail opened on National Trails Day, June 1, 1996; as of September 30,
1997, 921 rails-to-trails were open in 48 states. Including the Cardinal
Greenway trail, there are another 1156 trails underway in 50 states. But
Indiana is lagging behind with only 12 trails covering 45 miles.
In 1993 Cardinal Greenway purchased 60 miles of the former railroad corridor
from CSX Transportation Corporation to develop a rails-to-trails
recreational linear park covering five counties in Eastern Indiana (Wayne,
Randolph, Henry, Delaware and Grant). The route begins in Richmond, adjacent
to the Whitewater Valley Gorge Park at the historic Gas Company Works
building on U.S. 40 and extends northwest through Wayne County and the small
towns of Webster, Williamsburg and Economy. The trail continues through
Losantville in Randolph County and Blountsville in Henry County and enters
Delaware County near the southern end of Prairie Creek Reservoir and Park.
Bisecting the heart of Muncie, the trail crosses the White River and
continues northwest to the town of Gaston. Between Gaston and Jonesboro in
Grant County is a gap, a 11.3 mile section of abandoned rail corridor
purchased buy landowners. A route(s) will be chosen using public roads to
connect the two sections of Cardinal Greenway. The Cardinal Greenway resumes
in Jonesboro and overlooks the Mississinewa River and the western edge of
Gas City. Continuing northwest, the trail extends all the way through
Marion.
During 1994 Cardinal Greenway selected a design team which specifically
addressed trail issues of management and planning strategy, site analysis,
project development, and funding. A Master Plan was completed in early 1996
and final tracings were submitted to the Indiana Department of
Transportation (INDOT). A ground breaking ceremony in September 1997 sets in
motion the construction of 10 plus miles for the Phase 1 section of the
Cardinal Greenway from the Wysor Street Depot in Muncie to County Road 534
East, southeast of Prairie Creek Reservoir. Since that first ground breaking
ceremony the trail has been extended north from the Wysor Street Depot to the Town
of Gaston, north of Muncie. The most recently opened portion of trail
extends south from County road 534 East in Muncie 7 miles to the town of
Losantville in Randolph County. This provides the trail user with a total of 27
completed, continuous miles. The trail includes trail heads, rest areas, and
interpretative signage.
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