Following the release of the 2017 Connecticut Trail Census data, NPR reporter Patrick Skahill met with CTTC’s Kristina and Laura at the Farmington Canal Heritage Trail in Hamden to discuss and publicize the program!

Click here to check out the story.

For those who were not able to attend the recent webinar which provided an in depth analysis and discussion of the 2017 Trail Census data, the webinar recording is now available via the UConn Center for Land Use Education and Research (CLEAR)’s website.

Follow this link to view the recording of the webinar at your convenience: https://clear.uconn.edu/webinars/index.htm.

Title: “Digging into the 2017 CTTC Data”, Original Presentation Date: April 3, 2018
Presented By Kristina Kelly, Connecticut Trail Census Statewide Coordinator, Laura Brown, Community and Economic Development Educator with UConn Extension and Certified Economic Developer (CEcD), and Aaron Budris, Senior Regional Planner for the Naugatuck Valley Council of Governments

Run Time: 00:46:38

Announcing: “Digging into the 2017 CTTC Data” interactive webinar! Offered as a companion to last month’s release of the 2017 CTTC count and survey data, the webinar will serve as a “guided tour” of the data. Objectives include walking attendees through how to interpret the data, pointing out interesting patterns in data and key takeaways, and discussing the myriad of potential applications this data could have in improving our state’s trail systems.

This webinar will be hosted by the following members of the CTTC Team: Kristina (Statewide Coordinator), Laura (UCONN Extension Educator), and Aaron (Senior Regional Planner for NVCOG). Cost is free, but registration is required.

Click here to register.

A story published in the New Haven Independent dated January 16th, 2018, features CT Trail Census’ Site Coordinator for the Farmington Canal Heritage Trail New Haven, Aaron Goode.

In the article, Goode advocates for developers and city planners to consider the benefits of the trail beyond recreational users. He uses CTTC IR counter data to illustrate the point that people are using the trail in high numbers even in the winter when the trail isn’t plowed. This suggests that people may be using the trail for commuting and that the city should plow and maintain the trail during the winter months.

Being able to present exact trail usage data such as that which CTTC’s IR counters collect is extremely beneficial when advocating for trail maintenance, improvements and construction.

Click here or copy the following link into your browser to read the full article.

http://www.newhavenindependent.org/index.php/archives/entry/munson_canal/

The Connecticut Trail Census team has been collaborating on an exciting new project out of the University of New Hampshire (UNH) Cooperative Extension. The project, called Downtowns & Trails, focuses on trails as a “natural amenity” and the connection between trails and the development of downtown community spaces. An end goal of the project is to create a guide for those interested in economic development through the inclusion and promotion of trails in downtown areas. This will be achieved by establishing a network where knowledge and experiences relating to economic development and trails may be shared. The Downtowns & Trails initiative also anticipates researching what conditions will make for a successful downtowns and trails initiative by visiting locations who have successfully implemented similar ideas in the past.

CTTC collects economic data from trail users with its Intercept Surveys by asking if and how those surveyed plan on spending money on their current trip to the trail. Trail users can select a spending category such as meals at a restaurant, lodging, or retail and estimate how much they plan on spending. With the spring and fall survey sessions resulting in the collection of over 1,000 surveys in its pilot year, the Census expects to gather an impressive amount of economic data to support surveying as a useful data collection method applicable to the Downtowns & Trails project model.

Earlier this fall, Laura and Kristina worked together with collaborators from UNH, Vermont, Washington, and Kentucky on a proposal for the 2017-2018 Northeast Regional Center for Rural Development (NRCRD) Small Grants Program and are pleased to announce that the proposal was accepted and the grant awarded! In January, they will attend an in-person workshop at UNH to develop the project and to plan a visit to Kentucky to learn from their Trail Towns Program.

For more information, visit these links:

https://extension.unh.edu/articles/Exploring-Paths-Vibrant-Downtowns

https://www.kentuckytourism.com/industry/industry/adventure.aspx

Click this link to view the CTC monthly newsletter for program updates and an overview of the 2nd Annual CT Trails Symposium held on October 19th. As mentioned, the slides from our presentation that day can be viewed here!

Loading...

Taking too long?

Reload document

| Open in new tab

Interested in learning more about economic impacts of multi-use trails?  Check out the resources here compiled here: http://communities.extension.uconn.edu/trails/multi-use-trail-resources-and-links/

Click Here to view the CTC September Newsletter.

Just a reminder that the CT Trail Census program’s suggested dates to perform the final round of qualitative data collection via Intercept Surveying is Sunday September 16th – Sunday September 24th.

Open this post for more information on surveying on your trails.

Guidelines:

• Each trail should submit surveys from 2 separate survey sessions: 2 hours on a weekday and 2 hours on a weekend.
• It is recommended that survey trips be planned based on trail highest use times using data gathered by the IR counters in previous months.
• At least 2 volunteers should be scheduled to perform each session, and more may be required if your trail has a particularly high volume of users.

Remember, these guidelines were developed to ensure that each trail group is able to obtain an adequate amount of data about the users of their local trail.

• Doing your best to complete the surveys based on these recommendations will maximize our ability to analyze and understand trail usage in your community.
• Keep in mind the overall goals of the program such as advocating for trails, improving trail amenities and raising funds for trail improvements and maintenance as you complete surveys this fall.

Lastly, resources for Intercept Surveying such as the PDF of the survey and training guides are located on our home page. Also, don’t forget to enter volunteer hours!

Please reach out to Kristina, the Trail Census Statewide Coordinator at cttrailcensus@gmail.com if you have any questions regarding the fall surveying process. Thank you for participating in this important aspect of the program and we hope you enjoy getting out on your trails this fall!

In an effort to keep participants informed and engage the public, CT Trail Census can now be found and ‘liked’ on Facebook. Social media platforms offer and opportunity for programs like the Trail Census to post project updates, pictures, and related content in real-time.

We are looking forward to hearing your comments on the page so check it out and be sure to click ‘like’! That way, Trail Census posts will show up on your ‘Facebook Newsfeed’. (Nothing will be posted to your personal page.)

Click here to view the Facebook page.