Press release from the Coalition for Recreational Trails:
Washington, D.C. (November 10, 2021) – Twelve trail projects and a state trail program have been chosen by the Coalition for Recreational Trails (CRT) as recipients of its 2021 Tom Petri Recreational Trails Program Annual Achievement Awards. The awards – honoring former U.S. Representative Tom Petri (WI) – recognize outstanding use of Recreational Trails Program (RTP) funds. These projects were honored November 10 at a live virtual ceremony with participation by award recipients and key trails champions, including Members of Congress.
The trail projects honored by the CRT and award categories are:
- Doty Bridge Replacement (Michigan) – Multiple-Use Management/Corridor Sharing
- Prison Hill Recreation Area (Nevada) – Community Linkage
- Statewide Fourteeners Maintenance (Colorado) – Maintenance and Rehabilitation
- Neahkahnie Mountain to Manzanita Trail (Oregon) — Maintenance and Rehabilitation
- Chautauqua Bottoms Accessibility Upgrades (Illinois) – Accessibility Enhancement
- Griffith Peak Trail Rebuild (Nevada) – Public-Private Partnerships and Access to/Use of Public Lands
- Vermilion Falls Trail (Minnesota) – Construction and Design
- Climax Tunnel Rehabilitation (Pennsylvania) – Construction and Design
- Evans Creek ORV Area (Washington) – Youth Conservation/Service Corps
- Sign Language Saturday (Arizona) – Education and Communication
- Bridge Buttress Trail (West Virginia) – Enhancement of Federal Lands
- Waterloo Valley Trail Bridge (New Jersey) – Engaging Public-Sector Partners
CRT also honored the Maryland State Recreational Trails Program as the 2021 Outstanding State Recreational Trails Program. State award winners are chosen for the award by the National Association of State Park Directors Awards Committee – particularly appropriate because in most states, the state park agency administers the RTP.
Details on the honored projects and programs as well as a link to viewing the awards ceremony are available at www.rectrails.org.
The Recreational Trails Program (RTP) is an assistance program of the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration (FHWA). See the RTP website (http://www.fhwa.dot.gov/environment/recreational_trails/). Federal transportation funds benefit recreation by making funds available to the States to develop and maintain recreational trails and trail-related facilities for both nonmotorized and motorized recreational trail uses. The RTP funds come from the Federal Highway Trust Fund and represent a portion of the motor fuel excise tax collected from nonhighway recreational fuel use: fuel used for off-highway recreation by snowmobiles, all-terrain vehicles, off-highway motorcycles, and off-highway light trucks. A database of the more than 30,000 projects funded by the RTP since its inception in 1991 can be found at www.recreationaltrailsinfo.org.