PRESS RELEASE-
RAIL-TRAIL FEASIBILITY STUDY CONTRACT AWARDED FOR CHESTER CREEK BRANCH

 ASTON - A feasibility study to look at transforming the unused Chester Creek Branch Rail Line into a public recreational trail system will be performed by Brandywine Valley Engineers/Vollmer Associates of Aston.

 The Chester-Ridley-Crum Watersheds Association and The Friends of the Chester Creek Branch signed the contract with Brandywine Valley Engineers/Vollmer Associates on Thursday, November 12, 1998. The work is scheduled to be completed by fall 1999.

 “This is a project that will greatly benefit the citizens of Delaware County and improve our quality of life,” said Mike Fusco, Vice President of The Chester-Ridley-Crum Watersheds Association.

 The rail tracks parallel the Chester Creek for 6.7 miles from the Wawa Train Station to the Caleb Pusey Plantation in Upland.  The rail path passes a number of historical sites and environmental treasures. The completion of the rail-trail project would provide access to these important sites.

 “Our goal for this feasibility study,” Fusco said, “is to establish a blueprint for this project to move forward in the most open possible environment. Input from responsible members of the local communities is vital to the ultimate success of this important project for Delaware County.”

 Public meetings will be scheduled throughout the course of the feasibility study to provide the public with an update on the progress of the study and a chance for them to comment on the project.

 “We’re looking forward to working on this worthwhile community project for the citizens of Delaware County,” said Joe Viscuso of Brandywine Valley Engineers/Vollmer Associates.

 A recent study by the Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission found communities surrounding the proposed Rail-Trail will have a deficit of more than 250 acres of parkland by the year 2000. Delaware County residents now visit the Schuylkill Valley Trail almost 20,000 times a year and Ridley Creek State Park about 250,000 times a year.

 “CRC and the Friends of the Chester Creek Branch realize there is a need to expand the park and trail system in Delaware County to better meet the needs of its citizens,” Fusco said. “Successful completion of the Chester Creek Rail-Trail project would provide valuable, needed, active and passive recreation facilities for the residents of Delaware County.

 For more information on the Rail-Trail project, the Chester-Ridley-Crum Watersheds Association and the Friends of the Chester Creek Branch, either write to Friends of the Chester Creek Branch at P.O. Box 2313, Aston, PA 19014 or visit the non-profit group’s website at ctrail.

 Funding for this feasibility study was provided by the generous support of members of CRC and Friends of the Chester Creek Branch, a Keystone Recreation Park and Conservation Fund Program Grant from the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, Bureau of Recreation and Conservation and by a grant from the William Penn Foundation.
 

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