Katy Trail Dispute
Well another fine mess for bicyclists in the Midwest. Katy Trail in Missouri could very well on it's way to the grave, thanks to a move on Govenor Blunt's part.
For the record the trail is the longest bike/hiking trail in the Rails to Trails genre. It attracts over 350,000 people a year. It is 225 miles long, and covers a good portion of the state from east to west. Economically it is a godsend to the business community along the trail, and the towns adjacent to it. Many bed and breakfast, restaurants, and bike shops rely on it's visitors. Also it is a beautiful trail to transverse.
The bridge is not used by hikers or bikers, and remains in the up position to allow barge traffic to move freely along the river. The trail uses a roadway bridge to allow users to move across the river. Now the problem. In simple leaglize, the Gov has sold the bridge in Boonville back to the Union Pacific RR to be dismantled. Once it is gone the rail line is no longer intact. Big deal you say? It is since it has to remain for the rail line to be intact.
For the record the trail is the longest bike/hiking trail in the Rails to Trails genre. It attracts over 350,000 people a year. It is 225 miles long, and covers a good portion of the state from east to west. Economically it is a godsend to the business community along the trail, and the towns adjacent to it. Many bed and breakfast, restaurants, and bike shops rely on it's visitors. Also it is a beautiful trail to transverse.
The bridge is not used by hikers or bikers, and remains in the up position to allow barge traffic to move freely along the river. The trail uses a roadway bridge to allow users to move across the river. Now the problem. In simple leaglize, the Gov has sold the bridge in Boonville back to the Union Pacific RR to be dismantled. Once it is gone the rail line is no longer intact. Big deal you say? It is since it has to remain for the rail line to be intact.
Under federal law, railroad lines no longer needed for active use can be converted to recreational trails, as long as they are "banked" for future restoration as rail lines. This allows the public right-of-way to be maintained. Otherwise, the land would revert to former owners. If there is a break in the line, Kucera said, private property owners along the trail could challenge the state and try to take their property back. Property-rights advocates have vigorously fought trails projects around the country.
From all that I have read it looks like the little guy taking on a Mega Corporation, and it's elected Govenor. Democracy at work in it's finest form! Another uphill battle for the little guy, and that's ok, because America is founded on this concept. All except for one small detail. If you don't have the money, your out of the running. You would think with the economic value the trail brings to the state, that the Gov would have left this one alone. But then again it stirs speculation, when you review what Union Pacific has dontated to the Gov's agenda, it makes one think, that something stinks, in Missouri.
To read further on this see: http://www.waveflux.net/archives/001613.php
posted by JayDee at 1:35 AM
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