February 2025 Newsletter
RTC’s TrailNation™ Collaborative is a multidisciplinary learning community for anyone interested in working in trail and active transportation. Join the email list.
Navigating the New Administration
The team at Rails to Trails Conservancy is working quickly to understand the range of implications as a result of ongoing actions from the White House and the administration in this incredibly dynamic environment.
One of these actions, a recently released U.S. Department of Transportation (USDOT) memo, Ensuring Reliance Upon Sound Economic Analysis in Department of Transportation Policies, Programs and Activities, offers significant insights into shifting agency policies and priorities.
If your project has experienced immediate effects as a result of these or any other administrative actions, please complete this short survey. If you prefer to speak over the phone, feel free to call RTC’s Advocacy Coordinator, Isabelle Lord at 202.974.5131. Your input will help us document what is happening in communities across the country, which will inform our advocacy to Congress and administration officials.
Registration Now Open: Join Us at the TrailNation™ Summit in Cleveland, Ohio!
Rails to Trails Conservancy’s TrailNation Summit is where the vision of trail networks at the center of healthy, thriving communities becomes a reality.
Register now to join us Oct. 27—29, 2025, when RTC will gather 500 trail network visionaries, innovators and practitioners from across the country for two days of dynamic mobile workshops, immersive learning opportunities, strategic conversations, and relationship building to unlock the power of trail networks for communities nationwide.
Upcoming TrailNation Collaborative Events
In response to your feedback, many of this year’s TrailNation Collaborative events will be focused on helping you access BIL funding. Our webinars and interactive online dialogues will provide opportunities to connect with other trail experts and advocates, all while giving you the tools and resources you need to take advantage of this critical moment. Mark your calendars for the virtual events coming up this year!
Celebrate Trails Date (in your community)
Saturday, April 26, 2025 | Learn more
TrailNation Summit (Cleveland, OH)
Monday, Oct. 27-Wednesday, Oct. 29, 2025
Funding Opportunities
Deadline: Monday, Feb. 24, 2025
This competitive grant program is designed to make transportation more resilient to rising sea levels, increased flooding, natural disasters and climate change.
OPENING SOON: Rural and Tribal Community Technical Assistance Grants
Applications open: Tuesday, March 4, 2025
The U.S. Department of Transportation’s (USDOT’s) Rural and Tribal Assistance Pilot Program offers $27 million in technical assistance grants to rural and tribal communities for the planning and design phases of development for transportation projects. There is no local funding match required to participate in this program. Up to $10 million is designated for tribal applicants. Applications will be accepted on a first-come, first-served basis beginning Tuesday, March 4, 2025, at 2 p.m. ET.
AARP Community Challenge Grants
Deadline: Wednesday, March 5
The AARP Community Challenge is accepting applications in three grant categories. Local governments and nonprofits with ready-to-go projects are eligible to apply.
Local Data for Equitable Communities Program
Deadline: Tuesday, March 18
The Urban Institute and the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation will select 30 nonprofits to each receive a $50,000 grant to use data to improve local conditions and help residents live their healthiest lives. The program helps nonprofits use data to catalyze local action and address inequities in the physical, economic, and social conditions of a place.
JUST ANNOUNCED: T-Mobile Hometown Grants
Deadline: Monday, March 31, 2025
Main Street America is partnering with T‑Mobile to provide grants of up to $50,000 to communities with populations of 50,000 or less to build stronger, more prosperous small towns and rural communities.
Get more information about funding sources for trails and active transportation on RTC’s Federal Funding Resources page.
Resources
NACTO: Urban Bikeway Design Guide, Third Edition
The updated edition of the Urban Bikeway Design Guide will help city leaders and street designers meet the needs of our time. New topics address critical gaps, including planning and project development. Contextual guidance for bikeway design encompasses the needs of a wider swath of potential riders, across genders, ages, races, ethnicities, incomes, and abilities.
Federal Highway Administration: Separated Bike Lanes on Higher Speed Roadways Toolkit
This new toolkit from the FHWA includes policies, practices and procedures to help agencies implement safe, separated bicycle facilities on higher-speed roads.
Rails to Trails Conservancy: Working with Railroads
Our recent webinar series and companion toolbox page provide practical strategies for building productive partnerships and navigating the challenges of rail-trail acquisitions, such as managing appraisals, complex negotiations and railbanking. Watch the two-part series here: Part 1 and Part 2, and visit the Working with the Railroads page for even more tips and guidance.
Rails to Trails Conservancy Webinars From the Archive
Miss a recent webinar or online dialogue? You can find free access to all our recent RTC virtual events in the webinar archive or Resource Library on our website! This includes the newest addition to our TrailNation Playbook in Action series, Building Investment Strategies That Unlock Funding, which is designed to spark your imagination for vibrant and inclusive trail programming!
Other Events You Won’t Want to Miss!
American Trails: Increasing Physical Activity Through the Use of Trails and Greenways
Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025
America Walks: How to Make Your Data Impactful
Tuesday, Feb. 18
APBP: Lessons in Continuous Sidewalk Design and Bikeway Maintenance
Wednesday, Feb. 19
American Trails: Making Organizations Inclusive: Stories of Deaf Gain in the Outdoors
Thursday, Feb. 27
PeopleForBikes: Mapping Recreational Biking Access
Tuesday, March 4
American Trails: Navigating NEPA in Trail Development
Thursday, March 6
Tools for Collaborative Members
Get access to all the resources you need to create a vibrant trail network for your community—from funding opportunities to technical assistance.