Rail Trail gets an A from BAC students

Belmont Abbey College students often use the idle P&N Spur to cross I-85

Plan to build bike and pedestrian path atop old P&N Spur could benefit nearby businesses as well as students, they say

By Maria Abbe

Belmont Abbey College intern

So, what if you were told that in about two years we could have a walking/biking trail from our Belmont Abbey campus into downtown Belmont? Impossible right? Wrong. The city of Belmont is working on a project that would lay a trail on top of the current railroad tracks and make it possible to walk, bike, skateboard, run, etc., into downtown Belmont without worrying about traffic.

Current Belmont Abbey students were asked what they thought of this plan, and everyone seemed excited and enthusiastic. The trail could finally provide safe ways to bike, walk and run, they said. Plus the trail could benefit both Belmont and Mount Holly businesses economically.

Senior Johnny Hohenstein thinks the rail trail will help the broader community by creating new connections for people in and near the college. “I think that the trail would be a great addition and even act as a chance for the towns of Belmont and Belmont Abbey to become better connected economically and socially.”

While Hohenstein has a car, many students like fellow senior Kathleen Flanagan do not. The rail trail would have helped her greatly, she says. Flanagan says that has been hard to rely on others for rides into Belmont, or even to nearby Bi-Lo, just to get the necessities.

“By having safe access to downtown Belmont, it would allow me to get a job at one of the local restaurants or shops and safely get to and from work,” she said.

Maddy Harris, a sophomore who enjoys biking, said that she is all for the rail trail as a way to let her ride safely. She said that drivers here have no respect for bikers. She said that there have been many times where she’s been riding her bike and has been yelled at to “get a car.” This is disheartening, she said, because so many Abbey students have bikes but only a few actually muster up the courage to ride them.

“Kids are too timid to take to the roads because the community is so sadly unaware of North Carolina bike laws and mandates,” she said.

Harris hopes that with a rail trail, more people in the Belmont community will become aware of bikers and the bike laws that the state of North Carolina holds.

Many Belmont Abbey students are involved in athletics or like to run for fitness. Currently runners either must run along the shoulders of nearby busy highways or use the old train bridge to get across I-85 – both dangerous options.

Kristen Mahoney, a junior, is one of these runners. She says that cars often come close to hitting her, and running on the tracks hurt her shins and calves. Mahoney also brings up the issue of high gas prices. “There are no trails near here so if I wanted trails (to run on) I'd have to drive to them, which leads back to the gas problem. So in short we need a trail.”

While, Harris, Hohenstein, Flanagan and Mahoney will have graduated by the time the rail trail is likely to open (the estimated time for groundbreaking is 2014), future students will face the same problems these students do. Hopefully, our current freshman will be able to take advantage of the rail trail before they graduate.

Keep up with Rail Trail progress

The City of Belmont frequently updates its Rail Trail webpage. CLICK for project details and progress.