Nature Trails and Mixed Routes - Tourism and Trails: Cultural, Ecological and Management Issues - page 93

foundations (Gibson, 1999). One such organization is the Rails-to-Trails
Conservancy (RTC), which was founded in 1985 as a non-profit association
with the aim of helping communities or organizations establish rail-trails,
petition the national government, facilitate rail-trail research and publish
newsletters and guidebooks about American rail-trails (Mills, 1990). While
the RTC itself does not operate rail-trails, it facilitates and supports the
designation and operation of trails across the nation. It serves as a kind of
clearinghouse whose mission is to promote a national network of rail-trails
to improve the health of America's environment, economy, transportation,
places and people (Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, 2013).
Presently there are 1785 rail-trails, totaling 34,181 km, in all 50 of the US
states (Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, 2013). The Katy Trail is perhaps the most
famous rail-trail in the US and is the country's longest at 383 km. It follows
the Missouri River in large part and is known for natural scenery and wildlife
(Ioannides & Timothy, 2010; Vance, 1991). Australia is home to 111 rail-trails,
with several more in progress (Railtrails Australia, 2013). New Zealand boasts
four rail-trails, and Canada is home to at least 58, with dozens more through-
out Europe, South America and Asia. The networks of rail-trails in the US and
Australia are especially active with the RTC and Railtrails Australia having
similar goals and purposes in promoting the conservation of disused railway
lines and creating a wide network of rail-trails in their respective countries.
The 2000 inauguration of the 150 km Otago Central Rail Trail, New
Zealand's first rail-trail, was the result of several years of negotiations
between the DOC and the Otago Central Rail Trail Charitable Trust. The
project entailed converting a disused line into a popular trail that is now
attracting tens of thousands of cyclists, hikers and equestrians each year
(Graham, 2004). The project entailed reconstructing 68 bridges of varying
lengths and historic importance, removing rock ballasts, re-grading the trail
surface, constructing car parks at the former station sites, installing direc-
tional and interpretive signs and building 14 ecologically friendly toilets
along the way (Graham, 2004: 33). The cultural heritage of the villages along
the trail, opportunities to go 'pub-hopping' and natural scenery are among
the path's leading attractions.
Case Study: Monsal Trail, Peak District National
Park, England
The Peak District is England's first national park, designated in 1951. It
is an area of great diversity often split into the northern Dark Peak and
the southern White Peak. It is regarded as Britain's most visited national
park with visitor numbers as high as 22 million annually (Holloway &
Taylor, 2006), although the park authority maintains this is a gross
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