The Fred Marquis Pinellas Trail is a

rail trail A rail trail is a shared-use path on railway right of way. Rail trails are typically constructed after a railway has been abandoned and the track has been removed, but may also share the right of way with active railways, light rail, or streetc ...

in Pinellas County,

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and ...

. It stretches from Tarpon Springs in the north to St. Petersburg in the south, passing through the towns of Palm Harbor,

Dunedin Dunedin ( ; mi, Ōtepoti) is the second-largest city in the South Island of New Zealand (after Christchurch), and the principal city of the Otago region. Its name comes from , the Scottish Gaelic name for Edinburgh, the capital of Scotland. Th ...

, Belleair, Clearwater, Largo,

Seminole The Seminole are a Native American people who developed in Florida in the 18th century. Today, they live in Oklahoma and Florida, and comprise three federally recognized tribes: the Seminole Nation of Oklahoma, the Seminole Tribe of Florida, ...

, South Pasadena, and Gulfport. It is utilized for

walking Walking (also known as ambulation) is one of the main gaits of terrestrial locomotion among legged animals. Walking is typically slower than running and other gaits. Walking is defined by an ' inverted pendulum' gait in which the body vaults ...

jogging Jogging is a form of trotting or running at a slow or leisurely pace. The main intention is to increase physical fitness with less stress on the body than from faster running but more than walking, or to maintain a steady speed for longer periods ...

, and

cycling Cycling, also, when on a two-wheeled bicycle, called bicycling or biking, is the use of cycles for transport, recreation, exercise or sport. People engaged in cycling are referred to as "cyclists", "bicyclists", or "bikers". Apart from ...

. Some trail users are able to commute to work using the Pinellas Trail instead of a motor vehicle. The distance that the main trail currently covers is .

History

The Atlantic Coast Line (ACL) and the Seaboard Air Line (SAL) railroads both served St. Petersburg and Clearwater for many years. They merged in 1967 to form the

Seaboard Coast Line Railroad The Seaboard Coast Line Railroad was a Class I railroad company operating in the Southeastern United States beginning in 1967. Its passenger operations were taken over by Amtrak in 1971. Eventually, the railroad was merged with its affiliate li ...

(SCL), which consolidated the existing infrastructure. After the SCL joined

CSX Transportation CSX Transportation , known colloquially as simply CSX, is a Class I freight railroad operating in the Eastern United States and the Canadian provinces of Ontario and Quebec. The railroad operates approximately 21,000 route miles () of track. ...

in the 1980s, of trackage in Pinellas County was abandoned, and purchased by the

Florida Department of Transportation The Florida Department of Transportation (FDOT) is a decentralized agency charged with the establishment, maintenance, and regulation of public transportation in the state of Florida. The department was formed in 1969. It absorbed the powers of t ...

. After voter approval, the County acquired the property and began construction of the Pinellas Trail. The first opened in December 1990, linking John S. Taylor Park in Largo to Seminole City Park in

. With the passage of the first Penny for Pinellas one-cent local option

sales tax A sales tax is a tax paid to a governing body for the sales of certain goods and services. Usually laws allow the seller to collect funds for the tax from the consumer at the point of purchase. When a tax on goods or services is paid to a gove ...

, plans were made to construct additional segments along the former railroad corridor. The Pinellas Trail is named after Fred Marquis, a former Pinellas County Administrator who served from 1979 until 2000. The Pinellas Trail is composed of the following railroad segments: *Former

Orange Belt Railway The Orange Belt Railway (later known as the Sanford & St. Petersburg Railroad) was a narrow gauge railroad established in 1885 by Russian exile Peter Demens in Florida. It was one of the longest narrow gauge railroads in the United States at th ...

(later

Atlantic Coast Line Railroad The Atlantic Coast Line Railroad was a United States Class I railroad formed in 1900, though predecessor railroads had used the ACL brand since 1871. In 1967 it merged with long-time rival Seaboard Air Line Railroad to form the Seaboard Coas ...

) from Tarpon Springs to Clearwater *Former

Tampa and Gulf Coast Railroad The Tampa and Gulf Coast Railroad (T&G) was a railroad company in the Tampa Bay Area of Florida in the United States. It initially built and operated a line that ran from the Tampa Northern Railroad main line in Lutz (just north of Tampa) west t ...

(later

Seaboard Air Line Railroad The Seaboard Air Line Railroad , which styled itself "The Route of Courteous Service," was an American railroad which existed from April 14, 1900, until July 1, 1967, when it merged with the Atlantic Coast Line Railroad, its longtime rival, t ...

) from Clearwater to St. Petersburg

Future

As of June 2022, the Pinellas Trail Loop will extend to in length. , of the of the Pinellas Trail Loop (including the Pinellas Trail itself and connecting trails) circling Pinellas County are complete.

Hazards

Unlike most rail-trails that traverse rural countrysides, the Pinellas Trail travels through several urban areas. When traveling through some of the neighborhoods in sections of St. Petersburg and Tarpon Springs, trail users are encouraged to be cautious. In Clearwater, the same warning applies; trail users may have the right-of-way in areas with minimal vehicular traffic, but they do not when the trail crosses a major artery such as State Road 60.

References

External links

Official Website

Pinellas Trails, Inc.

* ttp://www.americantrails.org/nationalrecreationtrails/trailNRT/Pinellas-FL.html American Trails
RailsToTrails.us Page For Pinellas Trail

a
100 Florida Trails
{{Coord, 27, 57, 32, N, 82, 47, 49, W, display=title Bike paths in Florida Former CSX Transportation lines National Recreation Trails in Florida Protected areas of Pinellas County, Florida Rail trails in Florida Transportation in Pinellas County, Florida 1990 establishments in Florida

History

Future

Hazards

See also

References

External links