Bucks County has a rich heritage of outdoor recreation and trail use with the county’s scenic beauty, mix of geography, preserved farmland, and historic sites combining to create a vast array of recreational amenities and opportunities.
In 2011 and 2012, Bucks County built upon this history by adopting the Bucks County Open Space and Greenways Plan (2011) and the Bucks County Bicycle Master Plan (2012). These plans identified that Bucks County contains:
- 350 miles of bicycling facilities
- 282 miles of shared-use trails
- 72 miles of hiking trails and nature paths
- 48 miles of equestrian trails
These two plans assessed trail and bicycling facility gaps throughout the county, as well as underserved areas, and desired routes and, combined identified 27 new greenway and trail corridors and 22 on-road and off-road bicycle spines in every borough and township in the county. These various projects fall into various stages of development and are being developed by a range of project sponsors including local municipalities, and county and state governments, as well as regional organizations.
Trail Uses & Benefits
Pedestrian paths, shared-use trails, and bicycling facilities serve a number of functions including:
- Providing recreational opportunities
- Serving as part of an overall transportation network