The scenic Pine Creek Rail Trail boasts more than 62 miles of relatively flat, non-motorized trail in northcentral Pennsylvania. Tioga County is working to extend this popular trail to Wellsboro.
That vision recently got closer to reality with the opening of the Charleston Street Connector.
The connector is part of a three-mile gap between Wellsboro and the northern end of the Pine Creek Rail Trail. The gap is one of Pennsylvania’s Top Ten Trail Gaps.
When complete, the extension will provide a safe mode of travel for people to make their way from the Pine Creek Rail Trail to the shops, restaurants, and hotels of downtown Wellsboro.
The Charleston Street Connector required installing a bridge across Marsh Creek. In an excellent example of adaptive reuse, Tioga County restored and reused the historically significant Howellville Road Bridge, an 1879 wrought iron bridge originally from Chester County.
“The finished product is a testament to the County of Tioga for including context-sensitive features such as painting, cable railings, formliners, and walkway lights,” said David Kapura, PE of Wilson Consulting Group, the project’s engineers. “These features blend the project into the landscape and enhance the experience of trail users.”
The rest of the Pine Creek Rail Trail extension is nearing completion. Construction is expected to finish by the end of this year.
