Old Plank Trail included in network planned to link bike paths from coast to coast

The Old Plank Road Trail in Will and Cook counties is now part of an all-new American experience that will take users through 12 states and serve nearly 50 million people.

The 22-mile local path has been included in the 3,700-mile Great American Rail-Trail route recently announced by the Rails-to-Trails Conservancy organization. More than 125 trails have been designated along the route, which stretches from Washington, D.C., to Washington State.

The Old Plank Road Trail travels from Joliet through New Lenox, Frankfort, Matteson, Richton Park, Park Forest and Chicago Heights and is owned and managed by multiple jurisdictions including the Forest Preserve District of Will County.

"It’s exciting to learn the Old Plank Road Trail was chosen to be part of the Great American Rail-Trail," said Ralph Schultz, the Forest Preserve District's chief operating officer.

The OPRT has been a popular path ever since the first 12-mile section opened in July 1997. Plans for creating the path date back to the 1970s, when the Forest Preserve worked with 14 municipalities to try to gain ownership of the defunct Penn Central railroad line.

"The OPRT was our first rail-trail conversion and would not have been possible without local advocates and volunteers as well as the commitment of our municipal partners in preserving the corridor and funding the development and maintenance of the trail," Schultz said. "The District will continue to look for opportunities to connect our forest preserves and communities in the future to duplicate the utility and opportunity that regional trails like the OPRT offer."

District spokeswoman Cindy Cain said while the Forest Preserve District focuses on connecting local trails to regional trails, the conservancy group is looking at the bigger picture.

“Seeing how all of the path pieces fit together and knowing that Will County is a part of this larger cross-country route reaffirms the District’s commitment to connecting communities and counties within the region,” she said.

Cain said the District is part of a coalition of governmental entities working to create the 40-mile DuPage River Trail, which would stretch from DuPage County south to Channahon in Will County where it will link with the I&M Canal State Trail.

“That is just one example of local efforts that will provide longer distance riding and hiking options for residents throughout northern Illinois and beyond,” she said. “The RTC’s work to identify and publicize a longer cross-country route shines a spotlight on all of the wonderful trails that already exist and those that need to be completed in the future.”

The remainder of the Great American route in Illinois uses the I&M Canal State Trail in Will, Grundy and LaSalle counties and the Hennepin Canal Parkway in Bureau and Henry counties.

Mitch Barloga, active transportation manager for the Northwestern Indiana Regional Planning Commission, called the Old Plank Rail Trail “a fantastic system” and was key in having RTC include Indiana in the Great American Rail-Trail route during the plotting process.

“Coming from Ohio, it was pretty much a given that the Great American Rail-Trail route was going to come through the Chicago area,” he said.

The trail’s preferred route was released May 8. An interactive map and additional trail details are available at railstotrails.org.

“The Great American Rail-Trail will unite millions of people over thousands of miles," Ryan Chao, president of RTC, said in a press release. "This trail is a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to provide together an enduring gift to the nation that will bring joy for generations to come."