For years, the team at RTC has championed the need for transformative federal transportation policies alongside partners in the field and on Capitol Hill.

What the Biden Infrastructure plan is missing, however, is a focus on creating low-stress walking and biking routes, like trail and active transportation networks.

Congress passed the $900 billion COVID-19 Emergency Relief Act of 2020, a wide-ranging economic stimulus package that includes support for transportation systems.

We take a closer look at some of the country’s earliest rail-trails, and how they helped inspire and build a nationwide movement.

Nearly three decades after its inception, the need for the RTP has only intensified as trail development accelerates nationally. The country has increased its number of rail-trails from around 500 to more than 2,200.

For nearly three decades, Transportation Alternatives (TA) has been the largest source of federal funding for trails and active transportation, providing more than $15 billion for more than 36,000 projects.

The 150-mile Great Allegheny Passage (GAP) in Southwestern Pennsylvania and Western Maryland is a premier rail-trail destination.

Here’s a look at RTC and a decade of rail-trails—their power and their impact. As the 2010s built momentum, opportunities to maximize the power of these essential community assets became clear.

This year, America and the rail-trail movement saw giant leaps, and small-but-no-less-important bounds, that have helped to achieve RTC’s goal of connecting the country by trail like never before.