The segment of the planned Ohio River Trail that links Theodore M. Berry Park to Lunken Airport has been narrowed down to three alternatives.

The City has been meeting with the Ohio River Trail Workgroup, which is composed of representatives of Ohio River Way, Leadership Cincinnati, OKI, the Chamber of Commerce, SORTA, and the Hamilton County Park District.

They have also been in close contact with all of the local utilities and local and national transporation concerns who own or have a stake in the property involved in this project. One major consideration has been SORTA's ownership of the Oasis Line and its possible future use for rail transit in the Eastern Corridor project.

The last public meeting held for this project was January 26, 2007, at the Mt. Washington Community Center. No further meetings have been scheduled, and no deadline has been set for selecting one of the three alternatives. (In other words, you can still send feedback.)

Meanwhile, design is ongoing on the section of trail from Wilmer Road to Carrel Street. Construction on this section should begin later this year.


What type of trail is this?

While the planning is still in its preliminary stages, the trail is envisioned as a 15-foot wide paved trail which uses federal design standards and is ADA compliant.

The trail may narrow at certain points (such as bridges) and will also contains "Share the Road" segments on less-traveled streets.

Trail segments adjacent to an active rail line will have a minimum separation of 11 feet from the centerline of the track. A six-foot barrier would separate the trail from the rail line in all instances where the trail comes within 30 feet of the track.


North Alignment ($16M-$18M)*



This option begins at Carrel Street, shares the road along Dumont Street, and then joins a side path along Eastern Avenue. It then heads north of the SORTA right of way over Delta Avenue. Two more road sharing segments occur at Hoff Street and Gladstone Avenue, before it eventually crosses over to the south side of the tracks, crosses over Riverside Drive on the Rookwood Overpass, and meets up with the existing trail at Berry Park.

Major benefits with this alignment are grade separations at major street crossings, great access to neighborhoods to the north, low maintenance and better compatibility with future light rail.

Problems are the three railroad crossings, unstable hillside between the trail and Columbia Parkway, poor access to points south of the trail and poor views of the river and Downtown.


River Alignment ($18M-$20M)*



This option begins at Carrel and extends as a side path along Carrel and Kellogg Avenue to Riverside East Academy. Existing trail there follows the riverbank to Corbin Street and then returns north to Riverside Drive, where it follows a side path to Gotham Street. At this point it returns to the riverbank. Near Lancaster Ave, the trail crosses Riverside Drive and follows the south side of the SORTA right of way, over the Rookwood Overpass, to Berry Park.

Benefits are that the trail provides visual interest, has plenty of adjacent places for trailheads and overlooks, uses existing trail investments and is compatible with future rail use.

Drawbacks are flooding and the necessary maintenance, unstable riverbank, at-grade street crossings and potential costly property acquisitions.


Temporary Alignment ($5.4M-$6M)*



Essentially, this alignment will follow the unused north railroad track, which would have to be removed. Access from Carrel would come from a side path. Near Lancaster Avenue, the trail crosses to the south side of the tracks, continues over the Rookwood Overpass and connects to Berry Park.

The major benefit is the straight, flat alignment. It would be grade separated at major street crossings and has decent connections to adjacent neighborhoods.

Unfortunately, future rail use would kill this section of trail. Even getting all of the agencies and stakeholders involved to agree on terms of this plan could take many, many years.

The trail would also be too close to an active rail line (8 feet). There could be points when riders are pinned between hillside and train. Plus the views suck.


For more info, contact John Heilman at OKI: (513)621-6300 or .

* I wouldn't pay any attention to these cost estimates, except how they relate to each other. The alternatives are in their preliminary stages and don't account for the impacts of future rail use on the cost, nor do they account for property acquisition.