The Denton County Transportation Authority (DCTA) was recently awarded funding from the Texas Department of Transportation (TxDOT) under the Transportation Alternatives Program (TAP) to complete the last portion of the A-train Rail Trail project in Lewisville. DCTA received nearly $2.4 million in funds to complete the last portion of the Lewisville Hike and Bike trail, which runs from the agency’s Old Town Station on East Main Street to the Highland Village/Lewisville Lake Station on Garden Ridge Boulevard.
Once complete, the Lewisville Hike and Bike trail will run from DCTA’s Hebron Station all the way to the Highland Village/Lewisville Lake Station. Construction on the last portion of the Lewisville Hike and Bike trail is expected to begin in early 2016.
“Receiving this grant is a huge step forward for the completion of our A-train Rail Trail,” said Jim Cline, DCTA president. “This project demonstrates our commitment to all modes of travel, and developing a comprehensive transportation system that improves the environment and overall quality of life for Denton County residents.”
The agency is working with the city of Lewisville on its Long Range Planning for Vision 2025, which incorporates the A-train Rail Trail. Once completed, the A-train Rail Trail will help provide access to recreational opportunities and other municipally-owned trails and provide a safe, affordable transportation alternative for local travel. In addition, the A-train Rail Trail is part of the North Central Texas Council of Governments’ (NCTCOG) regional Veloweb trail system, a 1,728-mile network of existing and planned off-street, shared-use paths (trails) designed for use by bicyclists, pedestrians, and other non-motorized forms of active transportation in the Dallas-Fort Worth metropolitan area.
There are three total phases for the completion of the A-train Rail Trail:
- Phase One (Denton Branch Rail Trail) – This 8-mile portion of the trail is complete and runs from the Euline Brock Downtown Denton Transit Center (DDTC) to Swisher Road in Lake Dallas.
- Phase Two (Lewisville Hike and Bike Trail) – The first portion of the trail (Hebron Station to Old Town Station) was completed earlier this year, and DCTA received a grant to construct the second portion which will run from Old Town Station to the Highland Village/Lewisville Lake Station. In total, Phase Two of the trail is 6.6 miles.
- Phase Three (Connecting Phase One and Two) – TxDOT will construct the portion of the 3.5-mile portion of the A-train Rail Trail that will run from Swisher Road in Lake Dallas to Kelton Road in Hickory Creek, as well as the portion of the trail that will cross Lewisville Lake, as part of the I-35E expansion (Kelton Road to Garden Ridge). Completion of phase three will complete the entire A-train Rail Trail, in which people will be able to bike, walk or run from Denton to Lewisville.
DCTA expects to complete its entire 18.1-mile A-train Rail Trail project by late 2017.
