Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
(CITU/NITU), allowing a transfer of the corridor to an appropriate entity for
use of another purpose before relinquishment (Cain, 1991: 65). In some cases,
the disused corridor is owned by the railroad company. In that case, it is often
sold to other investors or organizations. In this case, Welsh (1998: 56) noted
that the 'rail lines are worth a whole lot more abandoned under the rails-to-
trails scheme than operating as a rail line'. However, if the line was part of a
longstanding easement, rail enterprises will often agree to the right-of-way
for interim trail use, especially if the trail operators are willing to take respon-
sibility for fixing, beautifying and maintaining the property. If a CITU is
issued for a line by the ICC, the property owner's recrudescent rights are
suspended ad infinitum (Cain, 1991: 66).
As noted earlier in the topic, rail-trails are extremely popular recreation
and tourism resources, as well as legitimate transportation corridors, in the
US where, according to one former Rails-to-Trails program director, 'With
rails-to-trails, we're building a second national park system, usable by cyclists
of all ages and skill levels . . . It will interconnect trails and parks coast to
coast. There are no more Yosemites and Yellowstones to be developed, but
we do have this wonderful network of trails' (quoted by Pena, 1991: 92).
Similar sentiments about these 'linear parks' have been expressed by
MacDonald (1987), Mills (1990), Vance (1991) and Wandres (2000).
In many cases, rail-trails are operated and maintained by government
agencies, although some are organized and managed by various land trusts,
community foundations or other community-based non-profit groups (Gibson,
1999). To help in the process of expanding and developing, the non-profit
Rails-to-Trails Conservancy was established in 1985. It assists local associa-
tions to begin the trail conversion process, lobbies in Washington, DC, for
trails and publishes guides, newsletters and websites (Mills, 1990).
The extensive US rail-trail system has strongly influenced, and has been
intensely influenced by, similar programs in other countries, particularly
Australia, New Zealand, the United Kingdom (UK) and Canada (Graham,
2004; John Grimshaw and Associates, 1982; Lipscombe & Geddis, 2000;
Watkins, 1984). Although each of these countries has its own policies and
practices as regards the use of abandoned railway lines for recreation and
tourism, they share many similarities. The 150 km Otago Central Rail Trail
in New Zealand has become a very popular attraction for equestrians, hikers
and bikers in recent years. As highlighted in Chapter 3, that trail is overseen
by a collaborative body consisting of the Department of Conservation and
the Otago Central Rail Trail Charitable Trust (Graham, 2004: 33).
National Scenic Byways Program
As noted in Chapter 3, the National Scenic Byways Program began in
1991 with the passing of the Scenic Byways Act under the administration of
the US Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration.
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