DESCRIPTION

The Upper Scioto Trail pretty much a work in progress. What there is of it stretches in two separate sections: one goes north from Confluence Park for a little under a mile to a small parking area off Dublin Rd. where it ends with a short section blocked off by a chain-link fence. Farther down, an  new unconnected section, completed during the construction of I-670, stretches from the intersection of that road and Grandview Avenue to a point near the parking area of the River's Edge office complex near 5th Avenue.

The Upper Scioto Trail is meant to eventually connect and be part of the Ohio-to-Erie Trail, a huge recreational project planned to connect Cincinnati and Cleveland and much of central Ohio with one, long, uninterrupted trail. I believe that there are also plans to continue to trail north to the Griggs Reservoir Area, a popular running venue, and have included that as part of this trail rather than a separate section.

The section from Confluence Park begins at the southeast corner of Spring St (US33) at SR 315. Take the right fork (to the right side of the Confluence Inn). You'll go along the exit ramp of SR 315 and drop down and cross the park access road. (Stop sign). The trail turns right and passes under the SR 315 flyovers and arcs around right following the river. As you come to an underpass of Souder Ave, there is a branching trail to the right. This is the connector to the West Loop Trail. Continue straight ahead and pass under Souder. The trail will then meander up somewhat until it is level with Dublin Rd (US 33). It will roll somewhat as it ducks below underpasses for I-670 ramps but is fairly flat and straight otherwise. After the last underpass, it will level out along the road and follow the river for maybe three quarters of a mile before you will come to the fence which closes off the trail. There is a small parking area adjacent and buildings which are, I believe, part of the City Engineer's office. The trail originally went a few yards farther and ends in a stairwell that leads to a utility underpass of Dublin Rd. This allows folks working across the street to access the outbuildings without crossing the busy Dublin Rd. Unfortunately, recreational users are not so lucky.

To get from the Confluence/Dublin Rd section to this one via Dublin Rd and Grandview Ave:

The next section that is completed begin with a trailhead off Grandview Ave just north of the interchange with I-670. To get there from the dead-end at the fence you need to cross Dublin Rd. There is no signal or marked crossing. Traffic speed is fast and, during weekdays, somewhat heavy. For walkers and runners, getting to Grandview Ave means using the north-east side of the roadway as there are several spots on the opposite side with no clearance and no bail-out. There is sufficient shoulder and/or sidewalk, beaten path, etc. Cyclists can use the side in the direction of traffic as there is riding room both ways. The storm drains are marked with white lines. The road is in fair to poor condition.

At the intersection of Dublin Rd (US 33) and Grandview Ave, turn south (left). You might want to stay on the east side as the trail-head, contrary to what might seem right, takes off from the east side of Grandview before looping south under the freeway and ramps. There is some clearance and a short dirt road on the east side.

SCIOTO TRAIL - ODOT SELECTS NEW CONNECTOR ROUTE 6/08

A couple of years ago, ODOT introduced a proposal, or set of proposals with regard to connecting the two extant sections of the Upper Scioto Trail. Several alternatives were given and commentary requested on route preference. The alternatives ranged from finding some on-road solution using either Dublin Rd or Souder and McKinley to different crossings of the large undeveloped property north of I-670. Dave Roseman and Ira Weiss sent over an ODOT announcement (link below) which gives the final choice. Construction, which will involve crossing the Scioto twice on trail bridges, is not set to begin until 2010. Hopefully, the CRPD proposal to extend the Grandview Section as far as 5th Avenue will be in work as well.

The proposal is here: ODOT I670.pdf

The original proposal extracts with explanations is reproduced below:

Map	Commentary	Commentary

The entire original proposal is here:

Scioto Bikeway Handout.  Scioto Bikeway Alternatives Discussion

WITHER THE UPPER SCIOTO TRAIL?

The master plan for the Scioto Greenway Trail is to run from Confluence Park north through the Griggs Reservoir Area and, eventually, to connect with the Hilliard-Heritage Trail and the Dublin community trail system. Additionally, there are plans to bring the Ohio to Erie Trail in from the west to connect to the Upper Scioto at some point in the Grandview area. Given the current focus on other trails, these things will likely be some years away at the least.

ODOT CONNECTOR PROPOSALS: Confluence to RiverView.

On Nov 29th, 2005, ODOT held an open house and unveiled eleven alternative proposals for connection this section and the Grandview section. A detailed look and all relevant documents can be found at: http://www.cobac.org/

The proposals (eleven of them) along with other information can be found in an article at the Central Ohio Bicycle Advocacy Coalition (http://www.cobac.org/)

I am reproducing here (and on the relevant Scioto Trail section pages) two summary documents which outline the proposals. There are much more detailed reports on each proposal the environmental foundation linked to the Cobac website. (They are fairly large). The two reports below can be viewed or downloaded as PDF Files:

Scioto Bikeway Handout.  Scioto Bikeway Alternatives Discussion

The top line is a summary with maps and a page for comment. (The comment periods has been extended to 12/23/05) The second is a detailed discussion of each alternative.

IMPRESSIONS

Not much to say at this point. Spectacular view coming towards the city. This section from Confluence Park to the dead end is a nice, fairly easy and flat short run of something under a mile from the park. Probably best utilized as an out-and-back add-on alternate to one of the other segments of trail which meet in Confluence Park.

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06/02/2008