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Washington, D.C. --- U.S. Rep. Frank Pallone, Jr. (D-NJ) last night secured $450,000 in federal funds for the National Park Service to design and construct a 2.1-mile addition to the bike path at Sandy Hook.
The funds, which Pallone requested earlier this year, were included in the Fiscal Year (FY) 2007 Transportation, Treasury, and Housing and Urban Development (TTHUD) Appropriations bill, which passed the U.S. House last night. It will now move to the U.S. Senate for consideration.
Pallone said the pathway, which is 12 feet wide, will begin at the Fort Hancock ferry landing where the existing section now terminates. This will create a loop trail extending to the Gunnison and North Beaches and various historic sites and gun batteries at Fort Hancock.
This project completes the second of three phases of the Sandy Hook Multi-Use Pathway by adding a 2.1-mile loop in the northern part of the park. Also included in the funding proposal for this project are design improvements at two locations along the Phase 1 portion of the trail that were eliminated because of earlier funding shortfalls.
"Since the trail opened in October 2004, public reaction to the first phase of the Multi-Use Path has been extremely positive and the trail has been widely used," Pallone said. "These funds will allow us to expand the path so more area families can safely enjoy the natural beauty of Sandy Hook by bike or on foot."
The New Jersey congressman was also instrumental in securing the $1.8 million dollars in federal funding used to complete phase one of construction, which opened for public use in October of 2004. |
