Karrigan MonkHendersonville Times-News
The Saluda Grade Trail is one step closer to becoming a reality.
According to an Aug. 5 news release, the Saluda Grade Trails Conservancy is officially under contract to purchase 31 miles of a rail corridor from Norfolk Southern.
The proposed Saluda Grade Trail would connect Inman, South Carolina and Zirconia, North Carolina, going through the towns of Inman, Campobello, Landrum, Tryon, Saluda and Zirconia.
The trail is a collaboration between three North Carolina and South Carolina nonprofits: Conserving Carolina; PAL: Play, Advocate, Live Well; and Upstate Forever.
Rose Jenkins Lane, a spokesperson for Conserving Carolina, told the Times-News that the purchase price for the rail corridor, which includes both the real estate and the improvements on the land, including track materials, is $31.5 million.
Teresa Buckwalter, a project manager of Traffic Planning and Design, Inc., presented the results of a feasibility study for the trail during an Aug. 6 public information session held at Polk County High School.
Buckwalter said the study was conducted to determine whether the corridor could be converted into a trail, as well as what challenges or opportunities might appear during the process.
The feasibility study began in June 2023 with an analysis of the land and then turned to public engagement sessions throughout the fall. The feasibility study was completed in the spring of 2024 and presented to the public at the Aug. 6 session.
During the public engagement sessions, Buckwalter said several topics came to the forefront:
- Adequate trail width
- Appropriate surface for all uses
- Keep nature as-is and keep rural areas rural
- Consider the trade-offs
- Parking and access
- Protecting the privacy of landowners along the trail
An online survey was also provided, which Buckwalter said brought in more than 1,200 responses in the month it was available. In her summary of the survey, Buckwalter said there were several key findings:
- The trail will be popular
- Users will go long distances
- The uses will include hiking, walking, biking and enjoying nature
- The trail will be used by a variety of people
To better understand the entire 31-mile trail, the feasibility study considered the obstacles and opportunities of each one-mile section in an effort to best serve the project.
Buckwalter said erosion, overgrowth, road crossings and a land bridge in Tryon are the biggest challenges facing the Saluda Grade Trail.
Along the entire length of the trail, there are 47 total road crossings. These range from rural crossings that are not busy to those in the middle of towns.
"The line has been abandoned for some years," Buckwalter said. "People are used to being in their car and cross that railroad without having to stop at all."
She said because of the varying nature of the crossings, each would need to be addressed individually.
There are eight trestle bridges along the rail line, all eight of which Buckwalter said could be salvaged or repurposed.
In order to be ADA compliant, the slope of the trail needs to be 5% or less. Buckwalter said "most" sections of the trail range between 3.5% and 4.5% with "several sections" at approximately 5%. She said this is a "piece of good news." At the steepest part of the trail, the feasibility study recommends having "resting intervals" with benches at least every quarter mile.
"We want folks in wheelchairs to be able to use it," Buckwalter said. "On bikes and strollers and all the things they want to do."
While the trail will vary in width, Buckwalter said the base width would be 12 feet with three-foot shoulders. For this base width, the projected cost per mile, without bridge work or road crossing treatment, is $1.1 million.
Buckwalter also presented findings from a Clemson University study on the projected economic impact of the Saluda Grade Trail.
During construction, the project is expected to create more than 250 jobs.
The study projected a more than $20 million annual economic impact over a 12-year period, the first 10 years of trail use, plus two years for construction.
To close the presentation, Kristen Cozza, the trails and greenways coordinator for Conserving Carolina, spoke of next steps.
She said the hope is to have the land purchased within the next year, but surveys and environmental studies still need to be completed. Feasibility studies are also underway to connect the Saluda Grade Trail to the Ecusta Trail in North Carolina and the Daniel Morgan Trail in South Carolina.
Cozza said there still needs to be "a lot" of community input before the project is completed.
More: Saluda Grade Trail would be ‘extraordinary recreational amenity’ for region, says Conserving Carolina
More: Saluda Grade Trail gets big boost from newly-passed N.C. budget
Karrigan Monk is the reporter forBlack Mountain News and Hendersonville Times-News, part of the USA TODAY Network. Reach her at kmonk@blackmountainnews.com.
