Columbus – The Ecusta Trail has reached an important milestone with the addition of new pedestrian bridges. These bridges have been incorporated along Phase I of the developing Ecusta Trail, which follows an unused rail corridor connecting Henderson and Transylvania Counties. Phase I stretches from South Main Street in downtown Hendersonville to the Highway 64 and Battle Creek Road crossing in Horse Shoe.
A total of six pedestrian bridges have been added to this section of the trail, replacing sections of unused train tracks with prefabricated steel. The bridges include railings for pedestrian safety and are designed to accommodate emergency and maintenance vehicles as needed. They are elevated to minimize impacts on waterways and flood levels along the trail.
“This is a significant milestone for the project,” said Henderson County Engineer Marcus Jones in a video statement. “We are fortunate to have secured a wide bridge, especially at this end of the project in an urban area. It looks great, and we’re excited to see it.”
The Ecusta Trail will bring a long-anticipated new life to the former Watco Rail Line with a 19.4-mile multi-use pathway. The paved trail will be open to pedestrians and cyclists of all skill levels who wish to experience the diverse mountain landscapes between the towns of Hendersonville and Brevard.
In 2021, the nonprofit environmental advocacy organization Conserving Carolina purchased the railroad right-of-way from Blue Ridge Southern Railroad through a process known as railbanking. Railbanking allows an unused rail corridor to be converted into a pedestrian or multi-use trail until it is needed again for rail service. More than 6,000 miles of rail corridors have been preserved through this process, although fewer than a dozen have been reconverted into rail service since the 1980s, according to Conserving Carolina.
Approximately 11 miles of the planned trail lie in Henderson County. Conserving Carolina has leased the railroad right-of-way property to Henderson County, which includes a strip of land between 37 and 123 feet along the former rail line. The Henderson County government is responsible for creating and maintaining the eastern portion of the Ecusta Trail, in conjunction with the City of Hendersonville, Town of Laurel Park, and the nonprofit Friends of the Ecusta Trail, among other partners.
The development of the Henderson County portion of the trail has been divided into multiple phases, with the first six miles and six steel pedestrian bridges completed as part of Phase I. An official groundbreaking ceremony for Phase I was held in October 2023. As of early July, all rail lines have been removed, and paving has begun. A ribbon-cutting ceremony for the first six miles of the trail is slated for December of this year.
The width of the trail will vary from 14 feet in urban areas around downtown Hendersonville to 12 feet in the rural section leading toward Highway 64. The trail is intended to accommodate a range of users, including serious hikers, families, pedestrians, and wheelchair users. The current phase of development focuses solely on the actual trail, with features such as landscaping, restrooms, and additional parking planned for future work.
Though the total cost of the Ecusta Trail is estimated at $43 million, the cost for Phase I in Henderson County is just over $10 million, according to the Henderson County Planning Department. The construction costs are being funded by private donations and various federal, state, and regional grants.
A preliminary economic impact study completed in 2012 estimated a one-time return on investment between $3.13 and $4.24 for every dollar invested in the purchase and construction of the Ecusta Trail.