We are pleased to pass on the news that the Connecticut State Historic Preservation Office and Preservation Connecticut have announced that the recipient of the Harlan Griswold Award for 2024 is the Farmington Canal Heritage Trail in Connecticut. “Beginning in the 1980s and now nearing completion, the trail successfully adapts the historic corridor originally created as the Farmington Canal and later converted to the Canal Line Railroad. The trail preserves and celebrates two key periods of transportation history while accommodating present day users. We envision the award as recognizing the two organizations who advocate for the trail, the Farmington Canal Rail to Trail Association and the Farmington Valley Trails Council, along with mentions of the towns and cities through which the trail passes.”

The Harlan Griswold Award, for “leadership, vision and selfless dedication to preserving Connecticut’s heritage,” is presented jointly with the State Historic Preservation Office and considered Connecticut’s highest recognition for preservation.  Griswold was the longtime chairman of the Connecticut Historical Commission (forerunner of the Connecticut State Historic Preservation Office) and a founder of Preservation Connecticut.  

The awards will be presented Thursday, May 9, beginning at 5:30, at the New Haven Country Club, 160 Hartford Turnpike, in Hamden.

The full press release can be viewed here: https://preservationct.org/2024-preservation-award-recipients 

Volunteers currently maintain 6 trail counters to detect traffic in these locations.
This data has been used for the Canton/RT 44 Corridor Study, Simsbury LAW Bicycle Friendly application among others.

Want to know how well-used the trail is? Click here.

CRCOG and the Town of Canton are conducting a corridor study of the Route 44, in the Town of Canton.

The purpose of the study is to:

• investigate and evaluate current transportation infrastructure deficiencies including bicycle and pedestrian options and transit, along a portion of Route 44 as well as adjacent roadways in the town of Canton
• evaluate existing and future traffic signal locations on Route 44, between Canton Village and the Simsbury Townline and a portion of Dowd Avenue (State Route 565), from Canton Hollow  to Route 44
• investigate and evaluate alternatives to improve movements of motor vehicles and freight through the area under the anticipated future build out as a high-density, mixed-use village
• evaluate safety improvements to accommodate a proposed East-West extension of the existing active transportation route (the Farmington River Rail Trail) and determine the best location of a trail crossing on Route 44. The study will also investigate and evaluate non-motorized travel options that connect surrounding neighborhoods within the study area as well as current and future commuters from other areas to opportunities including but not limited to employment, education, and healthcare in the area
• develop a recommendation plan to address those deficiencies.

The study is being done from Summer, 2023 to Fall, 2024.  To get involved, you can take their survey at:
https://tinyurl.com/cantonctstudy

For more information see: https://crcog.org/rt44/

Construction has begun to fill a gap in the Farmington Canal Heritage Trail in Southington.  When completed, the new segment of about 1.3 miles will extend north from Lazy Lane to Aircraft Road, bringing the trail under I-84 via a refurbished rail tunnel.  Read more in this story from WTNH: https://www.wtnh.com/news/connecticut/hartford/construction-underway-to-close-gap-in-farmington-canal-heritage-trail-in-southington/

The Town of Simsbury will be undertaking a large scale renovation of the Old Drake Hill Flower Bridge that will begin in October 2023 and likely go through the end of the summer in  2024.  We will not be accepting any reservations for public gatherings (weddings/anniversaries/photos) for this October/November and all of 2024 until we know the Bridge work is completed.  There will be no flowers on the Bridge in 2024 and the park adjacent to the Bridge will not be open to the public until the construction is completed.

See complete information here:  https://www.simsbury-ct.gov/culture-parks-recreation/pages/the-old-drake-hill-flower-bridge

Today, the League of American Bicyclists honored the efforts of Simsbury to build better places for people to bike with a silver-level Bicycle Friendly Community (BFC) award. Simsbury joins 506 communities across the country in the movement for safer streets and better bicycling for everyone. The award recognizes Simsbury for its commitment to creating transportation and recreational resources that benefit its residents of all ages and abilities while encouraging healthier and more sustainable transportation choices.

Read more…

If you have through the trail underpass at Rt. 44 in Avon recently, you saw the beautiful new mural decorating the tunnel.  Read the story of the mural as reported in the Avon Patch. https://patch.com/connecticut/avon/new-avon-trail-mural-brightens-hiking-biking-excursions.