WINDSOR, ONT. -- A new campaign called “Rethink the Trail” has launched online, opposing the extension of the Ganatchio trail on Riverside Drive East.
The plan, first proposed in 2017, will connect Lesperance Road to Lakewood Park.
"It's not safe. It's not logical. It's not feasible,” said homeowner Don Crowder. "A two-and-a-half-meter swath of asphalt this close to a busy road that has a residential section along with over 80 entrances. And there are also 55 utility poles.”
In 2017, the price tag estimate for the proposed trail was between $950,000 to $1 million.
Two public information session were held since that time.
"This isn't the Ganatchio Trail,” said John Parent, another homeowner who lives on Riverside Drive East. “We don't have 100 metres of green space to build this in.”
The trail is part of a 20-year Active Transportation Plan to connect all seven municipalities across Windsor-Essex.
"A lot of people who are directly in front of the trail are opposed to it. Eighty-five per cent of people in town support it," said Tecumseh Mayor, Gary MacNamara. "Active transportation is the future. We are not going back here."
Another homeowner CTV News spoke with said he would like to see expanded sidewalks on both sides of Riverside Drive along with a designated bike lane on the road.
A final draft of the plan is expected to be presented in the coming months, with an estimated completion date between two to three years,
More information on “Rethink the Trail” is available on the campaign's website.
