A long-awaited expansion of the Schuylkill River Trail is set to make its informal debut on Thursday, May 15, with a Fun Run/Walk open to the public. Hosted by the Schuylkill River Development Corporation, the organization responsible for the trail, the event will give the public an opportunity to test out the new “Christian to Crescent” extension before its official opening on Saturday, May 17.
The Christian to Crescent segment follows the river from the SRT’s present Christian Street terminus south to the Grays Ferry Crescent Trail, passing under 34th Street.
When the extension opens on Saturday, May 17, it will add a total of 2,812 new feet of trail beside (and above) the Schuylkill River in Drexel University’s backyard. The pièce de résistance is a striking cable-stayed bridge spanning 650 feet of the addition.
An official ribbon-cutting ceremony will take place near Christian Street on May 17. While some Drexel students have been counting the days, others are just hearing and are now excited.
“I had no idea they were adding this,” said Emmslie Hernandez, a fourth-year computer engineering student. “I definitely plan to use it as soon as I can.”
Maria McNicholas, a fourth-year civil engineering major, told The Triangle she looked forward to trying it “[that] Monday, as soon as my classes are done.”
The project’s completion marks a significant milestone in enabling car-free and fare-free access from Southwest Philadelphia to Center City. This long-sought, missing half-mile has been advocated by city planners as a means for commuters to get to Center City on foot or by bike.
“I’ll probably check it out within the next month [on a] run, or just walk down to South Philly. I imagine that’ll be a really nice walk like the rest of the trail. [And it] makes it a little more accessible without the need for public transit,” said Josh Bobar, fourth-year electrical/computer engineering major.
The project cost came in at a hefty $48 million, but according to SRDC president and CEO Joseph Syrnick, that is because it was built to succeed.
“What we’ve tried to do here is build a really high-quality product here,” he told NBC10. “Might have cost a little bit more but in the long run it should be a savings.”
The next significant trail milestone is a crossing at Grays Ferry. Repurposing parts of a former railroad swing bridge, the trail will cross the Schuylkill near Bartram’s Garden to reach its southernmost point, near 61st Street. The crossing was initially slated to open in 2019, but that timeline was derailed when the new truss bridge was damaged in a windstorm while being fabricated off premises. Per SRDC, the current projected opening is late 2025.
Meanwhile, federal funding was secured in January for a proposed southern extension from 61st Street to Passyunk Avenue and a northern extension to Wissahickon, but amidst unprecedented government cuts, the status of those awards is unclear.