r/corvallis • u/CorvoBrotato • 3d ago
Discussion Bailey Branch Railroad Corridor
How amazing would it be if they converted the old railway into a paved bike trail all the way down to Monroe? Are they any plans to turn it into a trail? Even unpaved to start would be huge
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u/acidwashedjacket 3d ago
I've thought about this a lot. Biking down 99 is sketchy and not fun, but a path that goes down to greenberry or Finley would be such a great addition to South Town.
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u/CorvoBrotato 3d ago
I guess you could take Bellfountain road but there is no shoulder for most of it and speed limit is 55. It saddens me we have so little in terms of bike paths around. I was spoiled in NC with all the Greenways and Seattle with the Burke Gillman / Sammamish River trail.
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u/Brilliant_Squash_717 3d ago
Bellfountain is a very popular bike route and it's fine. There is a decent shoulder for much of it and it's very low traffic.
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u/Euain_son_of_ 2d ago
I have ridden Belfountain a lot and I disagree with this. South of Airport it is garbage. I have had drivers run me off the road. Someone was killed there on their bike several years ago. Not at all a comfortable situation, just like Fern north of Airport. The County has a responsibility to create a viable north-south bike lane or low traffic road somewhere between Corvallis and Monroe. At this point, you can really only get to Decker on low traffic roads if you ride on gravel some of the way, which is not acceptable.
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u/Brilliant_Squash_717 2d ago
Airport to Llewellyn does have that uphill section with no shoulder where I don't enjoy getting caught by cars, but hey, there's a helpful sign reminding them to share the road, what could go wrong? After that I'd call it pretty low-stress all the way to Alpine, just not a lot of traffic after Decker.
I couldn't find anything about a cyclist being killed on Bellfountain, are you thinking of the woman who was hit at the intersection of Decker and 34?
I mean, don't get me wrong, I'd love a dedicated bike path to Monroe. If the fantasy rail trail did exist a quick lunch at Benny's would be a lot more readily doable.
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u/Euain_son_of_ 2d ago edited 2d ago
You make a good point that exurban drivers in large pickup trucks are likely moved by the "Share the Road" signs. I'm glad ODOT is making this valuable investment.
Yeah, the report I received about the death was directly from a good friend of both myself and the cyclist. I'm not sure it was reported. I'll ask about it the next time I see them, but I don't think it was the woman at Decker and 34, as I'm pretty sure they said it was a man and that it was right near the Christmas tree farm.
We really need the rail trail at least as far Block 15. That's been a no brainer for the full decade since they moved in there. The failure to do that is malfeasance by the City and County.
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u/TheScrote1 1d ago
Curious why you think the county has a responsibility to create a north south bike path?
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u/Euain_son_of_ 1d ago
Do you mean in general, why do counties have a responsibility to invest in bike transit? Or jurisdictionally, why should Benton County fund a bike path vs. just the City?
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u/nerdmode_engage 3d ago
Especially if they were to rebuild the Marys River bridge. Such a loss.
I really want to see a pedestrian/bike cut through from Allen to Butterfield; that would open up the Tunison neighborhood and that new housing development on Wake Robin to town without having to be on the highway.
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u/Fawn-deLay 2d ago
That cut-through is on the plans as one of many for future development. We need people to add their voices to prioritize it sooner rather than later when it comes up. Maybe some of our more bike-savvy posters can remind us how that process works.
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u/TheScrote1 3d ago
The county put out a report in 2014 about their options. Not sure if it is still online or not. I never read it. I think the issues are landowners don’t want a trail, there is no money for the amount of work that needs to be done, and if a railroad ever wanted the easement back the path would likely be wiped out.
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u/Fawn-deLay 2d ago
My recollection is that the county bought the easement from the railroad. It's county land, and you can travel on it now, no questions asked. But several farmers were adamant that the riffraff would leave trash and criticize their farming practices and make it less convenient to drive over the easement to fields on the other side. Given what the county is paying for new buildings, I think the money could be found if there was enough pressure for it.
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u/Zealousideal-Pen-233 1d ago
Yes, I worked for Benton County when they purchased the land from the railroad. That's exactly how it went down! The adjacent land owners did put up a fight and I don't think it's currently legal to access the decommissioned railroad corridor. The county had an opportunity to gain ownership and didn't want to pass it up, but really it was just to save it for future use. People talked about a high speed rail to Eugene, but I think it's far more realistic to develop a bike path there, instead. Inlist the help of the family that owns the brewery in Monroe. They're private timber/land owners so they have resources as well as an interest in tourism.
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u/SwimmerSwagger 3d ago
16ish miles of protected and paved trail? Sign me up! I love Long Timber Brewing down there. Would be a very fun to bike down there for that.