Will Missouri State Parks accept the 144-mile Rock Island Trail State Park corridoar? | Tony Messenger

Tony Messenger, columnist with the St. Louis Post-Dispatch, recently published an article about the long wait of Rock Island communities for the development of Rock Island Trail State Park, and the impact the trail may have on Missouri communities like Rosebud:

Missouri State Parks is deciding whether or not to accept 144 miles of abandoned railroad corridor, shown in red on this map, as a second cross-state trail in Missouri

Ameren Missouri, which owns the 144-mile abandoned railway line, planned to donate the corridor and its right of way to the state, which would then create a second cross-state bike and pedestrian trail like the Katy Trail, built on the old Missouri-Kansas-Texas railway line, along the Missouri River.

“The new trail will bolster Missouri’s position as the nation’s premier hiking and biking destination — and strengthen local economies all along its path,” Nixon, a Democrat, said at the time.

But then politics, time and money intervened.

During his first year as governor of the state, Gov. Eric Greitens, a Republican, put on hold some of Nixon’s work to expand the state’s park system. Even as Ameren was removing rail ties and tracks from the old Rock Island line, Greitens was suggesting there might not be enough money in the state budget to complete the new trail.

The delay now might last through next year. . . .

Of the more than 8,500 comments the state received when seeking input on the Rock Island proposal, an overwhelming number of them were positive, saying the trail was a “no-brainer” that would bring economic growth to rural Missouri and take advantage of the state’s growing national reputation as an outdoor recreation haven.

So Rosebud waits for its revival.

More about Missouri's newest cross-state trail, the Rock Island Trail, on our Rock Island Trail page.