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On Track

Rail Trail Connector project work underway

The Inter-Mountain photo by Sarah Goodrich Crews have spent the last several weeks working on the Elkins Rail Trail Connector project that will connect the Allegheny Highlands Trail to downtown Elkins.

ELKINS — Work is underway on the new Elkins Rail Trail Connector project, which will link downtown to the current trail that stretches to Parsons.

“They are under construction. That kicked off a couple of weeks ago now,” Robbie Morris, Randolph County Development Authority executive director, said.

A groundbreaking ceremony was held for the project on June 21 at the head of the current Allegheny Highlands Trail and heavy machinery is already moving dirt.

The trail will continue from it’s current trail head, along U.S. 219 in Elkins, and cross a bridge onto Kerens Hill.

“Where the retaining wall is (along U.S. 219 on Kerens Hill) on that side, it’s going to go approximately over the left hand side of (the retaining wall), maybe a quarter of the way in, that general vicinity is where the bridge is going to go,” Morris said.

Once atop Kerens Hill, bicyclists, pedestrians and other trail users will be able to travel down the other side of the hill, crossing Harrison Avenue and heading into the downtown Elkins area.

“Where the truck turnout lane is, that is going to be cut off and separated from Harrison Avenue. That will be part of the trail, then there will be flashers to get across Harrison Avenue onto Martin Street,” Morris explained. “Then you will come down Martin Street into the back side of Elkins Town Square.”

Morris added that a bike lane would be added to Martin Street to protect bikers and walkers from passing traffic.

“That roadway is so wide as it is, then it will be painted and striped so a bike lane can be added there as part of the trail,” Morris said.

J.F. Allen Company officials have projected the bridge over U.S. 219 to be completed by early fall and the entire project to be completed by December; however, the contract allows until June 2019 for work to be finished, Morris noted.

“The initial plan — I’ve talked to (the West Virginia Division of Highways) and they were still doing site clearing and erosion control signage, getting the site set for a lot of heavy work — but the initial plan at the beginning of June is J.F. Allen Company said they wanted to have the bridge done by the end of August and first of September, and they wanted the entire project to be completed by December,” Morris explained.

“Obviously, a tremendous amount of variables go into whether or not they will be able to meet that deadline, number one being weather but they definitely have set up an aggressive schedule. By contract, they have a year, I think June 14, 2019, is how long they have to complete it,” he continued.

Morris said that while the development authority will pay bills as they are submitted, the grant received for the project is a 100 percent reimbursable grant.

“The money is there. The grant is a 100 percent reimbursable grant so when a bill comes in from the contractor the RCDA pays the bill, submits that to the DOH and the DOH reimburses the RCDA 100 percent,” he said.

At an RCDA meeting last week, the board of directors unanimously approved a financing plan for the project.

“I just had to get permission from the board to go up to a certain amount of our money that we can have out before we get reimbursed by DOH,” Morris said.

Morris said the project is on track so far.

“It’s going well at this point and I hope it continues to go as such,” Morris said. “I’m sure they love these last couple weeks of weather.”

The Randolph County Development Authority, Highlands Trail Foundation, Allegheny Highlands Trail, J.F. Allen Company, Randolph County Commission, City of Elkins, United States Forest Service, West Virginia Department of Transportation, Davis Health System, and Burgess and Niple are all sponsoring agencies in the project.

During a May Randolph County Development Authority meeting, board members accepted a bid from J.F. Allen Company, of Buckhannon, for the connector project.

The bid accepted was in the amount of $2,318,755.20 and includes directional signals to be painted on the roadway. A second bid was received from J.F. Allen in the amount of $2,299,226.20, but that bid did not include the signals.

“This is something they’re doing in urban cities,” said Morris during the May meeting. “Where the bike trail will conflict with traffic, there will be green paint to alert drivers that there is a rail trail going through that section.”

A separate bid was received from Bear Contracting, of Bridgeport, that would include directional signals, in the amount of $3,624,760.25. It was not accepted.

The RCDA received a grant from the West Virginia Division of Highways in 2010 for this project.

Morris said the construction of a bridge — which would be included for safety concerns — was not included in this grant; however, the RCDA will be receiving additional funding for the bridge portion of the project from the DOH.

The board has been working to make this project a reality for more than eight years. Morris said he first met with DOH in regard to this project in 2011 after taking over as executive director, noting the RCDA board had discussed the project for some time prior to his meeting with DOH officials.

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