CONCORD, N.H. – In his budget proposal to the legislature for fiscal years 2020-2021, New Hampshire Governor Chris Sununu is including a $3 million appropriation to the Department of Transportation to support greenway and non-motorized trail development. Governor Sununu’s addition of the trail funding follows an advocacy campaign by the East Coast Greenway Alliance in partnership with Bike-Walk Alliance of New Hampshire and Rails-to-Trails Conservancy.
The Department of Transportation would disperse the funding as grants to municipalities to expand up to a dozen trail projects throughout the state. Building and expanding trails increases opportunities for safe, active transportation and recreation while benefiting public health, the environment, and local economic development. Municipalities can also leverage the state funds for additional investment in greenways and trails.
“We thank Governor Sununu for recognizing the value of investing in trails and greenways. We’re pleased that he wants to increase options for active transportation and outdoor recreation across our state,” says Robert Spiegelman, an East Coast Greenway Alliance trustee and New Hampshire resident who spearheaded the campaign that resulted in emails and calls of support to the governor’s office. “Thanks to everyone who took the time to say that trails matter to you,” he says. “Governor Sununu heard us, and momentum for trails is growing in New Hampshire. We need to continue to speak up. And it’s time for our legislators to show us they are ready to invest in a healthy, sustainable, prosperous future for New Hampshire.”
