Montgomery County, PA

• Feasibility Study - Executive Summary
• Feasibility Study - Intro & Table of Contents
• Feasibility Study - Body
• Feasibility Study - Appendix 

The preparation of a feasibility study is critical to the implementation of any trail development proposal.  Such a study looks at the conceptual line from the County’s trail plan map to determine whether it is possible and practical to develop the trail in light of existing conditions and constraints.  In general, a feasibility study examines alignment opportunities and selects the best route for a trail, provided the concept is found to be feasible.
  The Liberty Bell Trail Feasibility Study will:

• inventory existing conditions along the former trolley route
• determine how conducive the corridor is to trail development
• delineate a study area boundary for further trail analysis
• assess alternative alignments around problem areas
• examine obstacles to the trail proposal
• recommend the most practical alignment for the trail
• prepare a trail concept plan
• present cost estimates

The Liberty Bell Trail Feasibility Study is an intergovernmental planning project along a 25-mile long study area that generally follows the former route of the historic Liberty Bell Route trolley from the Norristown Farm Park (East Norriton Township, Montgomery County) to Memorial Park (Richland Township, Bucks County).

Montgomery and Bucks counties, 16 municipalities through which the trail will pass, and the Regional Improvement Consortium (RIC - formerly NPRIA - a business consortium dedicated to land use and transportation issues in the region) are working together to undertake the study.  These entities formed a partnership, due in large measure to the efforts of the NPRIA who harnessed support for the trail idea among municipal officials and business leaders.  Montgomery County then submitted an application on behalf of the partnership, seeking grant funding for the study.  A $30,000 grant from the Keystone Rails-to-Trails Grant Program administered by the Pennsylvania Department of Conservation and Natural Resources was subsequently approved.

Using the State grant and local funding, The Waetzman Planning Group has been hired by Montgomery County as a consultant to help the committee prepare the feasibility study.  The study was completed in 2005.