{"id":114,"date":"2018-06-24T22:18:35","date_gmt":"2018-06-24T22:18:35","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/new.merrymeetingtrail.org\/?page_id=114"},"modified":"2025-01-14T14:24:59","modified_gmt":"2025-01-14T19:24:59","slug":"merrymeeting-trail-timeline","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"http:\/\/www.merrymeetingtrail.org\/?page_id=114","title":{"rendered":"Timeline of the Merrymeeting Trail"},"content":{"rendered":"
<\/figure>\n

2008<\/strong> – Representatives from Topsham, Bowdoinham, Richmond, and Gardner sign a memo of agreement supporting a regional trail system<\/p>\n

2008<\/strong> – Work plan is developed and trail corridor planning begins<\/p>\n

2009<\/strong> – First round of funding: received approx. $45,000 in funding from municipalities and state & regional grants<\/p>\n

2009<\/strong> – Granted planning and organizational assistance from NPS Rivers, Trails, and Conservation Assistance Program<\/p>\n

2010<\/strong> – Development of website and Merrymeeting Trail logo<\/p>\n

2011<\/strong> – Completion of a feasibility and planning study<\/p>\n

2013 <\/b>– Capital to Coast exploratory bike ride held from Bath to Gardiner, traveling along on-road interim Merrymeeting Trail route<\/p>\n

2014 <\/b>– Capital to Coast trail, of which Merrymeeting Trail is a central piece, is declared a “trail of statewide significance”<\/p>\n

2014 <\/b>– Maine DOT approves interim on-road route, trail brochure developed<\/p>\n

2015 <\/b>– Merrymeeting Trailblazers established — a supporting friends group of citizens, nonprofits, and town staff<\/p>\n

2015 <\/b>– On-road bike signs put up and another Capital to Coast bike ride is held<\/p>\n

2016<\/strong> – Board of Supervisors is created via interlocal agreement between four towns along the trail, bylaws written and adopted<\/p>\n

2016 <\/b>– Bowdoinham and Topsham expand stretches of roads and add trails, increasing accessibility and safety for bikers and pedestrians<\/p>\n

2017 <\/b>– 2nd annual Merrymeeting Bay Bike Tour is held during Bowdoinham’s Farm Day<\/p>\n

2018<\/strong> – Merrymeeting Trail convenes statewide trail gathering that becomes Maine Trails Coalition<\/p>\n

2019<\/strong> – LD 1141, a Resolve Directing the Maine Department of Transportation to Construct the Merrymeeting Trail<\/em>, is introduced and discussed in the Legislature<\/p>\n

2020<\/strong> – MaineDOT allocates $25,000 in its Work Plan for a public advisory process on the Merrymeeting Trail<\/p>\n

2021<\/strong> – Several new laws advance the Merrymeeting Trail, including the adoption of a Rail Corridor Use Advisory Council process and a directive to MaineDOT to create a statewide Active Transportation Plan that considers repurposing unused rail corridors as trails.<\/p>\n

2022<\/strong> – Merrymeeting Trail Board of Supervisors and all four towns along the corridor formally request MaineDOT launch a Rail Corridor Use Advisory Council for the Lower Road; it first convenes in November.<\/p>\n

2023<\/strong> – The Lower Road advisory council meets monthly, gathers information and incorporates robust public comment, and ultimately issues a recommendation to the Commissioner of Transportation that the Lower Road be repurposed as a trail on an interim basis.<\/p>\n

2024<\/strong> – The Merrymeeting Trailblazers hold community conversations in Topsham, Bowdoinham, Richmond, and Gardiner, engaging many community members in their hopes and aspirations for the trail. Information collected will inform future planning efforts.<\/p>\n

2025<\/strong> – The Maine Department of Transportation introduces LD 29, Resolve, to Require the Department of Transportation to Implement<\/a>\u00a0the Recommendations of the Lower Road Rail Use Advisory Council<\/a>. We will do everything we can to help it become law!<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

2008 – Representatives from Topsham, Bowdoinham, Richmond, and Gardner sign a memo of agreement supporting a regional trail system 2008 – Work plan is developed and trail corridor planning begins 2009 – First round of funding: received approx. $45,000 in funding from municipalities and state & regional grants 2009 – Granted planning and organizational assistance […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":142,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"class_list":["post-114","page","type-page","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.merrymeetingtrail.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/114","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.merrymeetingtrail.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.merrymeetingtrail.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/page"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.merrymeetingtrail.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.merrymeetingtrail.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=114"}],"version-history":[{"count":17,"href":"http:\/\/www.merrymeetingtrail.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/114\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":962,"href":"http:\/\/www.merrymeetingtrail.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/pages\/114\/revisions\/962"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.merrymeetingtrail.org\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/142"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.merrymeetingtrail.org\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=114"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}