Merritt Parkway Trail Study

The Merritt Parkway, a limited-access expressway, stretches 37.5 miles from the Connecticut/New York border along lower Fairfield County until it connects with the Wilbur Cross Parkway at the Housatonic River. Most people experience its beauty through the windshield of their car as they travel at high speeds past gently rolling hills, dramatic rock outcrops and forests that, in the springtime, are dotted with the blossoms of cherry, dogwood and mountain laurel. As commuters travel along, they pass under many historic bridges, each with a distinctive design, ranging from abstract art deco patterns and pilgrim and Native American motifs in cast concrete, to vines and flowers in wrought metal.

This study of a trail system along the Merritt Parkway is part of an effort to get people to pull over, turn off their engines and, eventually, leave their cars at home in order to enjoy the naturalistic beauty and historic charm of this important cultural resource and transportation corridor. It is also part of an ongoing effort by Regional Plan Association to protect and link regional open spaces through the creation of a network of greenways. Such a trail would provide a multitude of benefits including recreation and commuting opportunities. Encouraging alternative forms of transportation is particularly important in densely populated Fairfield County, whose residents suffer from the third worst air quality in the nation.

When the Merritt Parkway was constructed by the Connecticut Highway Department (now the Connecticut Department of Transportation) a swath of land approximately 300 feet wide was purchased. For the most part, the Merritt Parkway was constructed in the northern one-third or one-half of the right-of-way, leaving the southern part free of development.

Despite the numerous rock outcrops one observes while driving along the Merritt Parkway, much of the undeveloped portion of the land along the right-of-way is level to gently sloping, making it suitable for a pedestrian and/or bicycle trail. Because the existing road uses only a portion of the three-hundred foot right-of-way, a trail would be surrounded by a wide buffer, allowing continued privacy for neighborhood residents, and presenting minimal conflicts with possible future improvements to the Parkway.

Study Recommendations

1. Distribute copies of the study to ConnDOT, the Connecticut Greenways Committee, regional planning agencies, first selectmen, planning and conservation departments, local land trusts, bicycle, hiking and riding clubs, and neighborhood and other potential interest groups in towns along the Merritt Parkway.
2. Meet with officials and agency members at South Western Regional Planning Agency, the Greater Bridgeport Regional Planning Agency, and ConnDOT to ensure that a Merritt Parkway bicycle and pedestrian path is included in the appropriate planning documents so that the construction of demonstration trails will be eligible for ISTEA funding.
3. Meet with the engineering firm developing the Merritt Parkway management plan and a ConnDOT representative to discuss the merits of the trail and to ensure that the management plan does not exclude the future possibility of creating a trail along the right-of-way.
4. Meet with representatives of the planning and conservation departments, local land trusts, bicycle and riding clubs, and neighborhood and other potential interest groups to discuss the trail and the merits of specific demonstration trails and to gauge local interest and support for the concept.
5. Conduct a potential user’s study to determine specific interest groups that would use the trail and individual leaders who would spearhead the effort to build consensus for local demonstration projects.
6. Publish a map to publicize the potential trail system and its advantages. It should include information such as the location of the potential trail, access points, car and bicycle parking areas, turnouts and rest areas, nearby rest room facilities, and use regulations. The map might also include major destination points, intersecting state bicycle routes, nearby recreational facilities, scenic areas and points of interest.
7. Conduct a summer 1994 event as part of the East Coast Greenway Summer Tour to highlight the potential for a Merritt Parkway Trail as part of this national trail system.