It’s only been a few months since the paving was completed on the West Virginia portion of the Panhandle Trail; a project which truly has been years in the making. Now, it looks as if additional improvements are in the works for the trail, which travels between Weirton and Carnegie, Pa.

As we reported in our Thursday edition, the City of Weirton – with work from the Weirton Board of Parks and Recreation and the city’s Planning and Development Department – is planning to apply for a Transportation Alternatives Program grant through the West Virginia Department of Transportation.

A formal proposal is set to go before Weirton Council during its meeting this Monday.

I’ve noted this before, but I grew up near what is now known as the Panhandle Rail Trail. In my youth, and for many years before, it was an active Conrail line, with trains moving along its pathway several times a week.

I would occasionally walk along the tracks, making sure to listen for a train whistle.

When the line was shut down, it was a sign of the downward spiral of our local industry, and I recall uncertainty by area residents when it was announced the area would be turned into a recreation trail. Times certainly have changed.

While I was in college, I would ride my bike on the trail. The surface was a little rough, but workable.

Then, came a smoother surface of crushed limestone. Pennsylvania was already steps ahead, though, and had its section of the trail paved, matching up with other intersecting trails winding their way through the Keystone State.

Local officials finally were able to match them in recent years, slowly getting the funding together to pave the length of West Virginia’s portion.

In reality, this new project isn’t really a surprise. The paving and other improvements have long been discussed as part of other proposals, which would include finding a way to connect the Panhandle Trail to Ohio and beyond as part of the Great American Rail Trail. As noted above, it already goes into Pennsylvania, where it intersects the Montour Trail, which then leads to other trails in Pennsylvania, Maryland and Virginia.

Some of you may remember a group of area residents who used to do a fundraiser bicycle ride each year from Weirton to Washington, D.C. to benefit Tri-State Christian Academy. They would use the existing trail network to accomplish their mission.

There have been various ideas thrown around over the years, including the potential use of the Market Street Bridge. With a new bridge in the works, it will be interesting to see if designs include a bicycle lane, although there would still be challenges of how to get a connection down Route 2.

For now, the plan is to complete paving on approximately three-quarters of a mile between the Harmon Creek trail station and downtown Weirton, with the construction of a pedestrian bridge to connect the trail to a point along Cove Road near its intersection with Overbrook Drive.

People already ride bicycles on the sidewalks along Cove Road, so that would provide a direct connection with the city’s downtown. Whether there is anything to encourage them to make their way downtown is the next big question.

It also needs noting this isn’t a project that is going to happen overnight – or probably not even this year. The TAP grant received by the Park Board to begin the paving work was awarded around seven years ago. It took a long time to actually get the funding, and, even then, Parks officials had to seek financial support from other sources to reach the goal.

I’m sure it will be nice when it’s finished, and may give more time to develop a few amenities, but let’s be patient in the meantime.

(Howell, a resident of Colliers, is managing editor of The Weirton Daily Times, and can be contacted at chowell@weirtondailytimes.com or followed on Twitter/X @CHowellWDT)