flip

Anyone here use the Delaware and Raritan River Canal to get between Washington Crossing and Princeton?

It looks like you cannot stay on the canal path continuously without using some local local roads around Trenton through a high crime area. Google Maps seems to confirm the path gets interrupted.

Anyone use the canal path to commute up to Princeton area?

groth

You are correct, the path is interrupted through Trenton. A few months ago there was an article in the Trenton Times stating that funding had been found to connect the two parts of the path through Trenton. An abandoned railroad bridge will be used to carry the path over the route 1 freeway. In fact, if you drive the freeway, you will go under a bridge with the D&R canal logo on it. The connection will not be on the original tow path as the canal was buried underneath route 1 and runs through a culvert! I don't remember the completion date of the project, but it's a ways off.

- Ed

neilfein

The roads from Princeton to Washington Crossing are actually mostly very good for cycling, and it's one of my favorite places in NJ to ride.

@groth - That's good news about the towpath in Trenton! Is there a timeline for that?

groth

Sorry, I don't remember exactly what the article said and the D&R Canal State Park website is mum. I believe it was several years.

- Ed

flip

groth, thanks for the pointer. Based on your update, I was able to find the following story from Oct 15 2009. The article doesn't mention a timeframe but the guys over at Knapp's Cyclery thought they heard by this time next year. Good news if and when it gets done.

News
Path finders
STAFF WRITER
480 words
15 October 2009
The Times (Trenton)
TTT
Trenton Full Run
A10
English
(c) 2009. The Times. All rights reserved.

Once draping the geographic shoulders of Trenton, the Delaware & Raritan Canal long ago ceased to be the route of commerce which tied New York with Philadelphia and other parts of Pennsylvania by linking the two rivers. Constructed in the 1830s by Irish immigrants one shovelful at a time, the canal was for most of the 19th century an artery pulsing with the vital goods and coal to quicken growth and industry.

As railroads outpaced the tugboats and mules towing heavily laden barges, the canal fell into disuse and was eventually taken over by the state. Since then, transportation's loss has proved recreation's gain as the canal and its remaining structures were designated as nationally historic; in 1974, most of the canal and its narrow banks were made a state park.

Now, thanks to a $400,000 investment of capital-improvement funds dedicated for projects in state parks, forests and wildlife management areas, the canal's entire length will be whole again with the restoration of a 1.5-mile link in Trenton. From a point near Perry Street to Mulberry Street, the towpath was obliterated when the Route 1 Freeway was built in the early 1950s. Once reconnected, the canal path will loop from New Brunswick to Frenchtown.

The project fulfills a long-held wish of cyclists and pedestrians -- who must leave the trail and traverse Trenton's streets -- for a continuous route. It's also been the environmental aim of champions such as U.S. Rep. Rush Holt, D-Hopewell Township.

"Just think about it," said Holt. "A 70-mile path in the most densely populated state -- it's remarkable. And it's not just a path, it's also a nature preserve."

Frequented by walkers, bikers, canoers, joggers, anglers and equestrians, the canal and its path are as important today as they were when completed in 1834. Then, of course, it was an avenue toward the Industrial Revolution; now, it represents a little escape route from the demands of modern life.

Praised by the Sierra Club's New Jersey chapter, restoring the canal path's continuous swath will also complement various efforts to revitalize Trenton as a residence and a destination with an unparalleled recreational opportunity.

As it threads through the history of New Jersey, connecting fields and forests, the canal park is also host to an amazing array of wildlife. In fact, a recent bird survey conducted in the park revealed 160 species of birds, almost 90 of which nested in the park. While soaring mountains and crystal lakes were the superstars in Ken Burns' recent film on national parks, restoration also awaits in the smoother, calmer contours of much older landscapes.

The full range of the Delaware & Raritan Canal path as the backbone of the parkland is certain to enhance the quality of life in this region.

groth

flip - I see you're from Bucks County. When I was up at Bulls Island in October and crossed over to Lumberville, it appeared that the towpath on the Delaware Canal was being repaired. So we may have another option in the not too distant future.

- Ed

flip

i've never been on the towpath that far north although I ride all the roads in the area, mostly on the PA side. I do love the Rt 29 run up to Frenchtown once you get above Bull's Island.

I sometimes commute to South Brunswick. I take Wash Xing bridge to Titusvile Pennington Rd, to Blackwell, Rosedale, etc. Through Princeton to Ridge Road. Not horrible but the closer you get to Princeton the more congested everything gets, especially at rush hour.

So I started thinking about the D&R towpath. Even though it would add probably 3-5 miles, it would be fantastic to ride from Wash Xing to South Brunswick without all the car traffic.

How would you get to South Brunswick (Ridge Rd and Rt 1) from Pennington?

groth

Well, I live on Elm Ridge Road just to the northeast of Pennington, Boro. So when I commute to the university, I go Elm Ridge to Carter to Rosedale to Elm to Hodge...

I'm not sure how to get to Ridge Rd & Rt 1. If you take Carter Road to Hopewell, you can get 518 and take that through Rocky Hill (there's a steep hill just after Rocky Hill) to its intersection with Rt 27 and then take that north. Mostly it has shoulders, but it also has a lot of strip malls and a lot of traffic. I rode all the way from Princeton to New Brunswick on Rt 27 maybe 10 years ago. More recent experience has been from 518 South to Princeton on the bike on weekend loops and from 518 north to New Brunswick via car.

- Ed

flip

yeah, that's basically what I do. Then Rt 27 to Academy to Ridge. Despite the common perception, my experience has been that the area around Princeton is not that cycling friendly - for commuting anyway. On Sunday at 7am, those roads are lovely to ride. On Monday at 7am, not so much.

So I reached out to the D&R Canal committee and I received a reply today. He said: "thank you very much for your interest. While the ground breaking was held, the final settlement document of the land transaction have not yet been signed....The good news is that now that the site is cleared the only major construction issue is the construction of a retaining wall at the Mulberry end of the path. After that the DOT contractor will bring in equipment and it should only take days to lay the path. I am hoping for the project to be completed in late spring."

neilfein

+1. Princeton to Washington Crossing is a great ride - once you get out of Princeton.

groth

Yes, as a general rule I only commute during daylight and not during rush hour which means only during spring to fall (so I can leave work after 6pm) and on days when my teaching/meeting schedule allows me to leave home after 9am. All it would take is reasonable shoulders on the roads!

- Ed