VI Rail Trail announcement - Jan 15, 2014

Vancouver Island Rail Trail

Coombs to Parksville to French Creek

The RDN is gearing up to begin planning our first sections of Rail Trail within the Esquimalt and Nanaimo (E&N) railway corridor. With $2.6 million in funding support through the Federal Government's Gas Tax Fund, the first sections of trail, totalling approximately 10km, will connect the City of Parksville with Coombs and with French Creek.

The E&N Trail has been a priority for development and is fast growing across the island as other regional districts and municipalities complete sections piece by piece. To date, the Capital Regional District, Cowichan Valley Regional District, City of Nanaimo, and District of Lantzville have all completed some rail with trail.

Background

In 2009, the RDN undertook an E&N Rail-with-Trail Feasibility Study to assess potential trail development along the E&N rail corridor within Electoral Areas A, E, F, G, and H and the municipalities of Lantzville, Parksville and Qualicum Beach; the City of Nanaimo was not addressed as they had completed a separate study. The degree of difficulty to develop trail was assessed and a cost per metre identified. Overall, about 83 kilometres of feasible rail trail corridor was identified in the RDN, not including Nanaimo, at an estimated total cost to develop of approximately $28.7 million.
Around the same time, the RDN partnered with the Capital Regional District, Cowichan Valley Regional District, Comox Valley Regional District, the Island Corridor Foundation and Southern Railway to develop Rail-with-Trail Design Guidelines. The guidelines address all aspects of trail development and establish rural, suburban and urban design guidelines. The Rail-with-Trail Design Guidelines were adopted by all parties in June 2009.

Current Planning

The RDN is currently seeking consulting services to perform necessary studies, survey work and detailed design for the trail project. Click Here The RDN will be engaged with the community as this project unfolds. A public Open House will be planned for the fall of 2014, once preliminary design work has taken place. Once the design is complete, efforts will focus on construction.

Project Timeline

Trail planning and design may take up to a year, wrapping up in January 2015. A phased construction process for the trail will follow, likely beginning in the summer of 2015.