Trailblazing Triumphs: Celebrating the Success of New York's Empire State Trail Towns in 2023
You know that feeling when you ride into a town after a long day on the trail and it’s just… easy?
Like the community is ready to welcome you with open arms and knows exactly what you need?
Bicycle-friendly hotels that let you bring your bike inside? Check. Vibrant cafes and breweries just steps from the trail? Check. Public restrooms and water fountains right when you need them most? Check and check! We’re working to make that feeling a reality in more places across New York’s 750-mile Empire State Trail.
Now in its second year, the Empire State Trail Town program seeks to recognize and support New York’s exceptional trailside communities who’ve committed to going above and beyond in offering a high-quality trail user experience. In 2023, Parks & Trails New York, in partnership with the New York State Canal Corporation, welcomed three new communities into the program as provisional Trail Towns: the City of Lockport; Village of Newark; and City of Rome. Throughout the year, PTNY worked with Trail Town Steering Committees in each community to identify opportunities and develop tools to transform the spots into trail-friendly destinations. Special focus was placed on providing access to top-notch recreational opportunities for residents to enjoy and entice visitors to come back again and again to stay, explore, and spend.
A Community-Driven Process
The intensive nine-month network building, research, and planning process was facilitated by PTNY but driven by each of the Trail Towns. The program kicked off by establishing a Trail Town steering committee in each community, drawing on a diverse range of backgrounds including representatives from the municipalities, volunteer organizations and nonprofits, local businesses, chambers of commerce, interested individuals, and many others. These groups dedicated themselves to carrying out the Trail Town program requirements, undertaking activities such as gathering to complete the Trail Town self-assessment, going door-to-door to educate businesses about Bike Friendly NY certification, or organizing a welcome celebration for the popular cross-state bike tour, Cycle the Erie Canal.
Each Trail Town committee went above and beyond, building momentum and making huge strides in just a few months. Just this fall, Newark installed new signage on its Welcome Center and bought a bike pump to accompany its in-ground fix-it station. Lockport pulled out all the stops for the 25th anniversary of Cycle the Erie Canal, securing a pop-up bike shop and bike parking corrals to make it even easier for the 750 cyclists to explore the city. Rome conducted a trail signage inventory, installed a new fix-it station at Fort Stanwix, and certified a record number of businesses as Bike Friendly… in addition to opening a new pedestrian overlook on the Empire State Trail and a new stretch of the Mohawk River Trail.
PTNY As an Activator
How did PTNY help all of this happen?
We brought technical expertise, access to our statewide network of partners and resources, and knowledge of the needs and preferences of trail users. This specialized support worked to help each community better understand what it could do to provide a better experience for trail users and capture quality of life and economic benefits for the local community. To establish a baseline of trail use in each community, we provided each of the Trail Towns with an EcoVisio electronic trail counter and conducted analysis to help communicate the data. Our team facilitated a two-part, in-person workshop with a bike-around assessment to better understand each community’s assets and areas for improvement . We also worked with communities to create Trail Town landing webpages on www.cycletheeriecanal.com, highlighting the unique opportunities each community has to offer.
To wrap it all up, PTNY developed comprehensive Trail Town Action Agendas to help each community understand where it is at, and what short- and long-term steps it could take to reach the height of trail friendliness. Some of the highest priority actions identified include enhancing wayfinding signage, providing or streamlining camping options, and securing more bike racks for downtowns. While there are some general overlaps, each plan was tailored to the specific community’s unique needs. Lockport, Newark, and Rome are certainly spots to watch (maybe from the back of a bike?) in the coming years as they make progress toward their goals!
What’s next?
Each of the Empire State Trail Town communities emerged from the program with an enhanced understanding of the needs of trail users, a road map to guide future Trail Town advancement, and a group of individuals committed to advancing their local Trail Town effort. Now that each community has their own action agenda in hand, they’ve outlined plans to advance progress and committed to passing municipal resolutions in support of those plans.
Do you live in a trailside community and think your town would be a good fit for the Empire State Trail Town program? Let your municipal leadership know! Applications will open for the 2024 round on December 15, and are open to communities on both the Erie and Champlain Canalway Trails. Find out more about the criteria, application process, and program benefits at ptny.org/empirestatetrailtowns. There will be an informational webinar on January 10, 2023 at 10:00 am (register here) with an opportunity for Q&A at the end. The lead applicant must be a representative of the municipality, and must have support from at least one community organization (in the form of a support letter).