Communities around the nation are discovering what Missouri learned with the Katy Trail:
Many people are aware of the health and recreation benefits that trails offer to nearby communities but a less talked about benefit is the economic resurgence a trail can spawn. A prime example is the town of Cairo, W. Va., on the North Bend Rail Trail. Like most towns along a defunct railway line, business had suffered with the closing of the railway and opportunities were limited. But, the NBRT has become the social and economic center of the community and has brought an improved quality of life in a growing tourism-based economy with this beautiful and inviting resource.
According to James Jones of the Ritchie County Tourism Bureau, The trail is the centerpiece of Ritchie County tourism. After the trail opened, a bike shop, a new restaurant and a couple of bed and breakfasts sprang up. Nadine Maxwell, a clerk at RC Maxwell Hardware in Cairo, reports that the NBRT has “brought a lot of business to the area. Businesses always do better in the summertime when people are out on their bikes.”
