Brady Tunnel work along trail begins
EAST BRADY — Cyclists and regional trail enthusiasts will be excited to hear that the first phase of rehabilitation on the Brady Tunnel along the Armstrong Trail in Clarion County is under way.
Chris Ziegler, executive director of the Allegheny Land Trust in Kittanning, said the trust is leading a $1.3 million project to rehabilitate the 2,468-foot former railroad tunnel and upgrade five miles of the Armstrong Trail to the north of the tunnel.
Once finished, the new trail and repaired tunnel — which is nearly a half-mile long — will close a gap in the Erie to Pittsburgh Trail, a multiuse trail more than 300 miles long.
Ziegler, who also serves as president of the Butler-Freeport Community Trail council, said the trust paid more than $600,000 to complete a pollution project at the tunnel.
She said that project served as the matching funds for a $663,400 grant from the Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, which will pay for phase I of the tunnel revitalization project.
Phase I includes design and engineering costs, the repair of 50 feet of the northern entrance to the tunnel and the repair of a 20-foot hole in the entrance that has allowed water into the tunnel for decades.
“The water doesn't drain,” Ziegler said.
The Pennsylvania Utilities Commission closed the tunnel, which opened in May 1916, in 1992 due to its condition.
Although the funding for phase I is complete and work is set to begin shortly, Ziegler said the tunnel will not likely be open for about three years because of the extensive work needed in the 100-year-old structure.
She said she has already applied for a 2020 DCNR grant as well as another from the state's Department of Community and Economic Development for the next phase of the project, which would see a liner fitted into the tunnel as well as other repairs.“If I get all those, I would be able to open the tunnel with limitations,” Ziegler said.The 36-mile Armstrong Trail starts in East Brady and runs south along the Allegheny River through Ford City. The former railroad route includes a coal tower and train turnabout, Ziegler said, and bald eagles can often be seen soaring near the trail.She said revitalizing the tunnel and adjacent five miles of trail will increase the positive economic impact in the municipalities the trail traverses. The tunnel will attract photographers, bat lovers and train history buffs who will spend money in nearby East Brady, she said.“It will benefit all kinds of people,” Ziegler said.State Sen. Scott Hutchinson, R-21st, is firmly behind the trust's efforts to revitalize the tunnel and five miles of adjacent trail.“The Brady Tunnel project provides an important missing link in the Erie to Pittsburgh Trail,” Hutchinson said. “Longer trails have a greater impact economically because they bring in more outside users who are more inclined to stay overnight and spend money at local campgrounds, hotels and restaurants, for example.”He said closing the gap along the Armstrong Trail will be good for all of his constituents.“In addition, it provides more options for local users to ride variable routes, which promotes healthy activity and improves the quality of life for families in our communities,” Hutchinson said.The Armstrong Trail gap was identified as one of the top 10 trail gaps in a statewide Comprehensive Outdoor Recreation Plan.More information on the Armstrong Trail is available at www.armstrongrailstotrails.org.
