Branching out: Montour Trail opens new stretch of trail in Muse
The Montour Trail spreads out a bit farther now with the official opening of the Muse branch.
The Montour Trail Council held a ribbon-cutting ceremony attended by local and statewide elected officials Thursday morning to commemorate the new 0.6 mile stretch of trail.
鈥淭he railroad built a branch railroad down to serve the mine in Muse back in the 1920s,鈥� said Ned Williams, the project manager for the Muse branch, prior to Thursday鈥檚 ceremony. 鈥淲hen we purchased the trail through here, we also purchased the Muse branch for a ways. Our strategy had been to develop the mainline first, and then develop branches.
The Montour Trail stretches about 47 miles, and including the branches has more than 60 miles of trail. The Muse branch connects to the trail near the 24.3 milepost in Cecil Township, and is easily accessible from the McConnell Trails housing development.
The Montour Trail Council has worked with developer NVR since they began work on McConnell Trails more than a decade ago. Williams explained how they helped bring the Muse branch to fruition.
鈥淭hey graded it, roughed it, established some ditches, and then these guys, our volunteer maintenance crew 鈥� finished it into what you see now,鈥� Williams said.
The Muse branch goes off of the main trail and extends to Burnside Road near its intersection with Dogwood Lane. According to Williams, Montour Trail Council plans to extend the branch another mile into Muse.
Julian Wolfe, the president of Montour Trail Council, opened Thursday鈥檚 ceremony by recognizing the organization鈥檚 founders, some of whom were in attendance.
鈥淭his small band of intrepid, recreational enthusiasts founded and established this trail 36 years ago, and today it still remains all volunteer, a nonprofit organization,鈥� Wolfe said.
Washington County Commissioner Nick Sherman spoke Thursday about the importance of the trail for the county鈥檚 economic development.
Sherman described the trail as 鈥済reat tourism鈥� for the county.
鈥淚 always joke and say, look, no one is in Seattle, Washington, saying they are going to vacation in Washington County. So what is tourism in Washington County? It鈥檚 getting people from Upper St. Clair, and Bethel Park, and South park to come down and spend money in our stores. To go to Tandem and get an ice cream cone, and to stop at the Tanger Outlets when you鈥檙e done,鈥� Sherman said. 鈥淚t may seem like a bike trail, but it鈥檚 so much more. It鈥檚 making this a livable, workable place.鈥�