HARRISBURG, Pa. (EYT) — Piney Rail Riders, a nonprofit organization supporting legal trails for off-road vehicles in Clarion and Jefferson Counties, was one of two recipients of new state grant funding announced yesterday.
On Tuesday, the Wolf Administration announced new grant funding that will support two recipients in Pennsylvania for all-terrain vehicle (ATV) trails.
One of those two recipients is the Piney Rail Riders, a nonprofit organization based in Clarion and Jefferson Counties focused on preserving places to legally enjoy riding motorized off-road vehicles.
The Piney Rail Riders will be receiving a $64,000 grant to prepare a feasibility study for the Piney Branch ATV Rail Corridor, which approximately 24 miles from Piney Township to Brookville Borough in Clarion and Jefferson counties.
“We are thrilled DCNR was in support of our organization and our goal to preserve and eventually purchase one of the few remaining rail beds in western Pennsylvania,” said Terry Chapla, a representative of the Piney Rail Riders.
Piney Rail Riders is a 501-c(3) non-profit organization that has been attempting to purchase the rights to one of the only remaining tracts of rail bed in Clarion County that hasn’t been already purchased and designated a walking/biking only trail that excludes any motorized modes of transportation.
The ultimate goal for the railroad bed would be for a mixed-use trail which would be open to motorized off-road vehicles and non-motorized vehicles such as bicycles, as well as hikers, walkers, and horseback riders.