City gets TAP grant for $1M rail trail expansion

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MANCHESTER, NH – The city of Manchester has been awarded an $799,998 Transportation Alternatives Program (TAP) grant, to be used to extend the Rockingham Recreational Trail.

The rail trail grant was part of a total $6.9 million in funding from NH Department of Transportation’s 2016 TAP projects, awarded to 11 cities and towns around the state, and the University of New Hampshire, which applied for the grant money.

“It is very exciting to see yet another expansion of Manchester’s rail trail network. Together with the coming extension of the South Manchester Rail Trail and the addition of several recently-installed bike racks downtown, our city’s bike infrastructure continues to grow,” said Bike Manchester co-chair Will Stewart.

Public Works Design Engineer Bruce Thomas said the design process should begin in about three months, with construction set to begin in 2019. As with all the TAP awardees, the Manchester project requires a 20 percent match of municipal funds, or $200,000, and is subject to Governor and Council approval.

The projects will be constructed across the state as “alternative” transportation routes such as on-and off-road pedestrian and bicycle paths, rail trail improvements, and safe routes to school projects. Among the dozen projects included in this round of funding are sidewalks in Littleton, a multi-use path along the Androscoggin River in Berlin, pedestrian improvements in Somersworth and Hinsdale, as well as the Manchester rail trail project, which will extend the path between the CVS on Mammoth Road and Lake Shore Road.

A total of 46 applications were submitted for TAP funds totaling $26.6 million federal dollars. Criteria for scoring by the New Hampshire TAP Scoring Committee included safety, potential for success, connectivity, and socioeconomic benefits. Manchester’s project was scored as the top project.

Applicant Project Funding
Manchester Rail trail along abandoned rail bed from Mammoth Rd. to Lake Shore Ave. $799,998
Littleton Sidewalks along several streets and connection to suspension bridge $800,000
Somersworth Sidewalks along several streets and multi-use path between two schools $789,200
Brookline Pedestrian bridge over Nissitissit River & sidewalk from NH 130 to rail trail $580,000
Hinsdale Construct Sidewalks along Brattleboro Road $437,682
Lebanon Bicycle/pedestrian improvements along Lahaye Drive from NH 120 $640,000
Berlin Multi-use path along Androscoggin River $688,000
Hillsborough Construct approx. 4,800 ft. of sidewalk along NH Route 149 $530,765
UNH Sidewalks, lighting, crosswalks along Main St. in Durham on UNH Campus $368,158
Ashland Reconstruct and construct sidewalks on Main Street (US Route 3/25) $320,000
Merrimack Sidewalks along Daniel Webster Highway and Woodbury Street $520,000
Exeter Construct sidewalks on Epping Road, Winter Street, and Spring Street $433,009

 

About this Author

Carol Robidoux

PublisherManchester Ink Link

Longtime NH journalist and publisher of ManchesterInkLink.com. Loves R&B, German beer, and the Queen City!