Using the Schuylkill Trail not for play, but work

Article by Jon Campisi, Star Staff Writer


The Schuylkill River Trail often is viewed as a recreational amenity.

But some trail-users prefer to stay off the beaten path for functional reasons. For them, it's easier to commute via bicycle on the trail than it is to fight bumper-to-bumper traffic.

Now, trail enthusiasts are trying to determine just how many people use the trail for commuting and how many use it for recreation.

Members of the Bicycle Coalition of Greater Philadelphia and the Schuylkill River Project have teamed to perform what they call "trail counts," taking to the streets and observing the number, and type, of cyclists who come through Philadelphia's portion of the trail, which goes along the Schuylkill's eastern bank from Center City up through the Northwest.

In addition to helping develop an idea of how many people use the trail on a regular basis, the move is also geared toward generating a sense of where those users are coming from, where they're going, and what they view as the "gaps" in the trail in need of enhancement.

Read the complete article at http://www.philly.com/community/pa/philadelphia/60758267.html