Erie Cattaraugus Rail Trail Awarded NY Forward Grant
Erie Cattaraugus Rail Trail Awarded NY Forward Grant
$420,000 will be used for Trail Development Project in Aurora
ORCHARD PARK - Erie Cattaraugus Rail Trail, Inc. (ECRT), a local volunteer organization dedicated to developing the former Buffalo Pittsburgh Railroad corridor into a multi-use recreational trail extending 27 miles from Orchard Park to Ashford, NY, has been awarded $420,000 to develop the trail in the Aurora hamlet of West Falls.
“Strong support for our project by the Aurora Town Council and local residents made our proposal successful,” said ECRT President Mary Brummer. “ECRT demonstrated to the residents in Aurora that we have successfully built trails in Orchard Park and Springville. Our goal in the next few years is to connect Orchard Park and West Falls via six miles of safe off-road corridor, from the historic Orchard Park Train Depot to the historic West Falls Train Depot, encouraging people to enjoy outdoor activities and supporting businesses in both towns via this scenic recreational connector.”
The grant is part of a $4.3 million “NY Forward” revitalization program to help catalyze development, thereby boosting economic and recreational opportunities in West Falls. NY Forward trail construction in West Falls is scheduled for 2027. ECRT is additionally improving trail surface in 2025, installing milled asphalt over an adjacent 1.3 miles of trail between Ellicott and Old Glenwood Roads.
About Erie Cattaraugus Rail Trail, Inc.: Erie Cattaraugus Rail Trail, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization that serves as trail manager for a 27-mile recreational trail on the Buffalo Pittsburgh Railroad rail line. In 2018, ECRT, Inc. and BPRR signed a long-term rail banking agreement to allow for trail use and improvements. In 2023, the first 1.5 miles of the trail were resurfaced and opened to the public in Orchard Park, starting at the historic Orchard Park Village Train Depot, connecting to the 2-mile natural surface section that is open between Jewett Holmwood and Ellicott Roads. Another 8 miles of natural surface trail is open in Concord, including the 1.7-mile Pop Warner section in Springville. ECRT, Inc. has over 6,500 friends and community supporters. Find more information at https://www.ecattrail.org/.
About NY Forward: Governor Hochul announced the creation of the NY Forward program to invigorate and enliven downtowns in New York’s smaller and rural communities - the type of downtowns found in villages, hamlets and other small, neighborhood-scale municipal centers. NY Forward builds on the success of the Downtown Revitalization Initiative (DRI) by adopting the same “Plan-then-Act” strategy as the DRI.