County approves PennDOT pre-application and ARPA funding request for London Valley Rail Trail design work

Lebanon County commissioners voted to authorize submission of a PennDOT Transportation Alternatives Set-Aside pre-application and to use county ARPA funds to pay for final design and environmental clearance for a 5.5-mile section of the London Valley Rail Trail.

Tom Cote, a London Valley Rail Trail board member who said he does most of the organization’s grant writing, told the board the TASA program is a two-stage process that requires a pre-application by the close of business the next day and a final submission in October if PennDOT requests clarification. “This application process is a 2 stage process where you submit a pre application by a certain date, which is close of business tomorrow,” Cote said. He said PennDOT typically pays for construction but requires the applicant to complete design and environmental work before letting the construction contract.

The project summary included paving select trail segments, paving the Colbrook trailhead parking area, improving drainage and swales, upgrading culverts, adding new signs at roadway crossings such as Butler Road, and pavement markings. Cote provided a construction estimate that he said totals about $1,613,000, which he said PennDOT finds reasonable for the scope and for contingencies, inflation and construction inspection costs. He told commissioners that the trail group has done preliminary engineering through Wilson Consulting Group to reduce surprises during construction.

Commissioners asked staff and Cote several questions about later phases, property acquisition and paving choices. Cote said the long-term final section (phase 8) is estimated at about $4 million and likely would not go to construction until 2028 because additional property acquisitions remain, but that phase 8 is separate from the current TASA application. On whether entire trail segments would be paved, Cote said the plan calls for paving in specific areas with repeated drainage and maintenance needs and for keeping some compacted stone-dust surfaces where users prefer that texture.

Board discussion also touched on right-of-way and negotiations with private property owners. Cote said project staff are in active negotiations with owners in Phase 8 and that some related property issues (a mortgaged parcel) were “very close to being resolved.” He said standard approaches such as fencing or plant screening can reduce neighbors’ concerns where the trail is near private property. Commissioners asked staff to follow up on right-of-way questions in final design.

A voice vote approved the motion to submit the TASA pre-application and to use ARPA funds for the final design work; the board chair called for “aye” and the motion carried.

Commissioners and the trail board said the application must be filed on a tight timetable and thanked volunteers for maintenance and fundraising work that underpins the grant application.