In September of 2023, the Durham County Transportation Department and its partners at the City of Durham and East Coast Greenway Alliance submitted an application to the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Reconnecting Communities and Neighborhoods Grant program requesting $500,000 in Community Planning funding to conduct a study on the conversion of 18-miles of non-active rail corridor within Durham County into a trail. The 18-mile corridor would connect the end of the future Durham Rail Trail (Avondale Drive) to the Person County line, passing through the communities of Bahama and Rougemont along the way. This study would complement a similar ongoing study currently happening within Person County, where the intention is to convert the defunct rail corridor into a trail from the City of Roxboro to the Durham County border.

The path of this trail would connect users to recreation, cultural resources, public transportation, job opportunities, and educational facilities as well as serve as an active mobility route for parts of the County that have little to no access to bicycle and pedestrian infrastructure. Its addition would complete Durham County’s section of the East Coast Greenway and connect to other regional trail systems such as the Mountains-to-Sea Trail and the City of Durham’s greenway system.

The study will include an equitable community engagement effort to facilitate resident and business feedback on the corridor. A crucial piece of this rail corridor’s history deals with slavery, emancipation, and its connection to the Stagville State Historic Site. Durham County is committed to exploring opportunities to tell the stories of the surrounding area in a respectful and engaging way within the trail project. A key part of this planning study and its community engagement will evaluate how to convert this corridor into not only a transportation trail but a cultural resource that tells the history of Durham along its route. The study will also look at the environmental and community impacts that this project may have to determine how to properly move forward.

Anticipated benefits that the study will explore include safer conditions for bicyclists and pedestrians, improved active mobility connectivity and access within disadvantaged areas, decreased congestion, and increased protected greenspace, as well as others. The RCN grant provides funding for a planning process with the intention that we will later seek funding for construction. The planning process is a critical step to evaluate the options and ensure that the needs of Durham County residents and businesses are fully considered and incorporated into the project. This trail will be a long-term endeavor that will take many years to potentially complete. However, this grant funding would be a crucial step in making this resource a reality for Durham County.

Reconnecting Communities and Neighborhoods (RCN) Grant Application Materials:

1. Narrative [RCN Narrative - Durham-to-Roxboro Planning Study.pdf]
2. Budget Description & Funding Commitment Letters [RCN Budget Description & Commitment Letters - Durham-to-Roxboro Rail Trail.pdf]
3. Norfolk Southern Norfolk Southern Letter Sept 2023 
4. Letters of Support [RCN Letters of Support - Durham-to-Roxboro Rail Trail.pdf]
5. Supporting Maps [RCN Supporting Maps - Durham-to-Roxboro Rail Trail.pdf]
6. GIS Files [DurhamRoxboroRailTrail.zip]
7. SF-424 [RCN SF-424 - Durham-to-Roxboro Rail Trail.pdf]
8. SF-424A [RCN SF-424A - Durham-to-Roxboro Rail Trail.pdf]
9. SF-424B [RCN SF-424B - Durham-to-Roxboro Rail Trail.pdf]