East Coast Greenway Moves Offices to Durham

Enlarge image

Credit Dave Connelly, greenway.org

Section of off-road Greenway in North Carolina

The East Coast Greenway Alliance is moving its national offices to Durham this spring to work on trails in the South. The Greenway is a network of biking, jogging, and walking trails that run from Maine to the Florida Keys. More than 80 percent of trails in North Carolina follow roadways.

Greenway executive director Dennis Markatos-Soriano says he'd like to see parts of the trail move off the beaten path.

"When it's on road, it can still be a beautiful ride for a lot of experienced cyclists, but it's something that can be intimidating to someone who hasn't biked a whole lot or maybe they haven't jogged a whole lot. We want to set up the best route we can and we believe that route is through off-road Greenway."

Markatos-Soriano says Greenway administrators and state officials are discussing a new bridge in Durham that would close the gap in the American Tobacco Trail.