The lead story from the June 2007 Newsletter:

What’s been happening at the eastern end of the LVRT?

St. Johnsbury’s Three Rivers Transportation Path (TRTP) has been in the “planning process” ever since 1992, according to recent articles in the local newspaper. Over $700,000 of state and federal money has been expended as engineers from VTrans and independent firms have struggled to find solutions to the multiple problems they face in designing acceptable routing for the path’s 1.52 miles. The TRTP is to be designated to be free from powered vehicles of any sort (emergency and disabled-access excepted).

The eastern end of the TRTP begins on Bay Street in an industrial section adjacent to a lumberyard. It stays reasonably close to the Passumpsic River, crossing properties of Allen Lumber Co., CVPS, the old Ralston-Purina Mill complex, crosses a few seldom-used railroad spurs and finally the main line of Vermont’s Washington County RR Co., CT River Division (WCRR). It then joins the old St J&LC right-of-way to cross beneath US Route 5 via the existing tunnel.

At this point, plans remain unclear. The LVRT officially begins at 1.2 miles west from the junction with the WCRR. The simplest course might be to simply continue on the old St J&LC to the beginning of the LVRT, but it appeared desirable to loop it back to cross the Sleeper’s River on St. Johnsbury Academy’s footbridge – their access to a soccer field – then terminate on Barker Avenue, not far from the St. Johnsbury school (K-8) on Western Avenue. St. Johnsbury Academy stated that an upgrade to their footbridge is contemplated for access by emergency vehicles, and it might be better to have a separate bridge.

VAST’s winter trail network has a connection from near the east end of the LVRT to the Comfort Inn by crossing US5 at grade, as snowmobile use of the existing 350’± long tunnel would be problematic at best. The only other all-season access via (continued next column)...

As a fledgling organization the Friends have produced just three Quarterly Newsletters for March and June,2007 and February of this year. Links for PDF versions for these Newsletters are:

March 2007 Newsletter

June 2007 Newsletter

February 2007 Newsletter

If you have any news in your area regarding the trail, or pictures of LVRT that you would like to share, please email us at info@friendsLVRT.org

What's been happening, continued

roadways is in the vicinity of the railroad yards. Adequate parking at each terminus remains to be determined, as does the transition from street level grade to the LVRT at a former railroad bridge not far from the 1.2 mile point. Some recent public opinion has surfaced, noting the cost of the project to date, in view of nothing visible being accomplished in terms of formal approvals, easements, or actual construction. Next year, St. Johnsbury School officials are planning to lift a ban on bicycling to school for youngsters in grades 5-8. That will add an interesting component to the mix of problems remaining to be solved.

~ Roger Damon