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End of trail for some committee volunteers

By COREY LAROCQUE

Wednesday, September 28, 2005 - 02:00

Local News -

NIAGARA FALLS – Volunteers who promoted the Millennium Trail for years are now divided over the future of the trails and bikeways committee following city council’s decision last week to proceed with a pared down version of the trail.

While chairman John Anstruther is preparing to walk away, others want to soldier on to make sure the city does build the phases of the trail that have been approved.

“I’m just out of gas,” Anstruther said. He plans to resign from the committee at its next meeting October 6.

He said he’s disillusioned by council’s decision not to complete the trail as originally planned.

It was to be a 10-kilometre, north-south trail from Whirlpool golf course along the hydro canal to the Welland River. Under pressure from people who objected to the proposed route, council voted last week to alter the central section in a way that will force people to use city streets between Morrison Street and Lundy’s Lane.

“They don’t understand what a trails network is by putting the trails onto the streets. The trail has a hole in the middle of it,” Anstruther said.

“If you’re not going to buy into the concept, we’re not wasting our time.”

One of the issues he said worries him is the potential legal liability that might exist if someone is injured travelling on the city streets between the sections of the trail.

“I’m not willing to stick my neck out for a city council that won’t stick its neck out,” Anstruther said.

The city’s trails and bikeways committee began as a branch of the environmental, planning and greening committee.

But their mandate expanded and they became a full-fledged advisory committee, offering advice to the mayor and council about cycling.

There are a dozen volunteers on the committee. The split is almost even between those who are ready to walk away in frustration and those who want to continue, said Joe Talarico, a member since 2003.

If supporters of the trail walk away now, there won’t be anyone left to work on behalf of the portions of the trail the council has said it will build, Talarico said.

“Getting the two phases they approved on the capital budget and built will be a priority,” said Talarico. “The issues that are before us are too large and we have to see them through.”

The trail’s first phase is popular. Once the northern section is built, the interest in trails will grow, Talarico predicted.

The city needs to have a group of volunteers to continue advising the city on possible future trails, such as a downtown trail that would make use of the abandoned railway corridor along Ontario Avenue.

“When the usage gets high enough, the public will demand more. That’s for sure,” Talarico said.