WELCOME to the Long Island Greenways and Healthy Trails site! LI Greenways and Healthy Trails was founded in 2007 with the goal of creating a vast network of interconnected trail systems on LI so there would be safe choices for everyone to reach just about all destinations on LI on foot or on bicycle. The effort includes getting the various off road paved paths built and opened to the public, as well as getting more on road improvements such as bike lanes and other enhancements to reach these trails and to support constructing them where off road trails are not possible or feasible. We also will support the creation of more mountain bicycling trails and hiking trails where feasible. Our main goals include getting non-motorized access to all of our wonderful barrier beaches such as Robert Moses, this incudes the Ocean Parkway trail and the trail NYDOT promised to build when they refurbish the 3 lane Causeway bridge in the near future. An extended Wantagh Parkway trail, an extended Bethpage Bikeway, and finally the LI Motor Parkway trail which would run right down the center of Nassau and western Suffolk county. Also on the list are the Port Jefferson to Wading River trail and the nearby Setauket trail, another trail that leads from Belmont Lake to Argyle lake in Babylon, and of course, the Greenleaf trail in Holbrook and Sayville. We just found out that Nassau already planned a new trail around the Hub area and Eisenhower park, which is great because it included Salisbury Park Drive (about mile or so of the LIMPT) and Riverhead has also planned a 9 mile trail around the Enterprise park at Calverton. All great news, but other than the 1.5 miles of the Setauket Trail already built, NONE of the others have had a contract signed yet and most are on indefinite hiatus. So we will have a lot of work to do to get them all funded and "shovel ready"

Projects we are hoping to make progress on this year include the already funded Port Jefferson to Wading River former LIRR line (rails to trails) but there is a long story behind this effort. The project was first conceived in the 1990's and has had $2 million in funds that almost expired after years of limited progress. Finally, in 2009, the liability issue was settled, and another $8 million was dedicated to this wonderful trail project. But state law states that the entity building the trail must have some kind of legal interest in the land, either a long term lease or easement, and LIPA is unwilling to grant this. So the project has once again come to a halt as this issue is worked out.

The Long Island Motor Parkway trail also is making progress but has far less funds dedicated. We have about $450,000 so far and about $190,000 has been used to hire a consulting engineering firm to develop a master plan as well as a pilot project which might give us a half mile of trail. The good news is that at least 2 parts of this trail are already parts of other trail projects... the old road in Bethpage State Park is going to be refurbished as part of the Bethpage Bikeway extension, and the section of Motor Parkway currently known as Salisbury Park Drive will also get a bike path on the shoulder along the outer edge of Eisenhower Park. Issues include the usual ones, such as LIPA agreeing to it, MTA agreeing on the old Central RR property, which LIPA uses too, and various school districts (safe bike routes to school comes to mind!

The Wantagh Parkway proposal would be to extend and rebuild the old trail that leads up to the northern state parkway, it would be modernized and extended to the LIE I-495 service roads. There has been some controversy near some schools and possible wetlands in some areas.

The Bethpage Bikeway extension should also be ready to go within 2 years. There is some debate whether more public hearings are needed since the planning began so long ago. It will allow riders and walkers to ride all the way from Massapequa Preserve up to the Cold Spring Harbor LIRR station, utilizing about a one mile segment of the original LI Motor Parkway that still exists inside the state park. We have been assured the original historic banked curve, damaged by LIPA 3 years ago, will be restored as part of this project.

Ocean Parkway... it is technically ready to go but it seems to get stuck in the gate every year. There was some opposition from people who live by the beach of course, but we do expect that it will lessen ovet time and people realize this will improve their lives too, not hurt them. Many locals actually run along the parkway illegally now and most of them would welcome the trail.

site e-mail denisbyrne@yahoo.com