Demand for Trails and Routes - Tourism and Trails: Cultural, Ecological and Management Issues - page 105

American (11%). As for body mass index, there was relatively little difference
over those who used trails, the total weighted percentage being slightly
higher for those with a body mass index of less than 25. Omar et al. (2012),
in their study of walking trails in Kuala Lumpur, noted clear differences to
walking activity by ethnicity. The Malay people surveyed were predomi-
nantly irregular walkers, compared to the Chinese population, who were
predominantly non-walkers. Only the majority of the Indian population
surveyed stated that they were regular walkers. This difference in trail users
is important for local government and tourism authorities as they plan
improved walking trails that will encourage higher levels of participation.

Case Study: D&L Rail-Trail, Pennsylvania, USA
The D&L Trail is a 270 km multi-use rail-trail and canal towpath in the
US state of Pennsylvania. It is a popular heritage corridor utilized pre-
dominantly by state residents, though over one-fifth of its visits are out-
of-state domestic and international users. Visitor characteristics, as shown
in Tables 4.8 and 4.9, reveal an active older-age cohort making use of the
trail with varying frequency of use from first-time users to frequent

Table 4.8 Geographic and demographic characteristics of D&L Trail users

Characteristics Percentage of users

Residence
Residents of Pennsylvania 77.5

Out-of-state and international users 22.5

Age
< 15 years

1.2

16-25 4.8

26-35 10.6

36-45 12.4

46-55 26.4

56-65 27.8

> 66 16.8

Gender
Male

55.5

Female 44.5

Source: Compiled from Rails-to-Trails Conservancy (2012).

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