New Coalition Aims To Connect Puget Sound Through Regional Trails

SEATTLE — Four counties surrounding Puget Sound are teaming up to create a new coalition with one goal: connect the region through a series of paved trails.

The group is called the Leafline Trails Coalition, and is made up of elected officials, non-profits organizations, advocates, community groups and businesses from King, Pierce, Snohomish and Kitsap counties.

The Leafline Trails Coalition launched Wednesday, and going forward will work to connect much of the nearly 450 miles of trails across all four counties into a regional network of trails for cyclists and pedestrians to use. The hope is that the newly-interconnected web of regional trails will be able to offer reliable and healthy options for commuters, provide more equitable access to safe spaces for runners and bikers, and grow the economy by creating new tourism destinations and connecting businesses to customers.

Organizers say it's a much-needed project, and one years in the making.

"Leafline will achieve what Central Puget Sound has needed for generations: a regional trails network connected to high-capacity transit for the benefit of our people, our economy, and our environment,” King County Executive Dow Constantine said.

• Centennial Trail
• Eastrail
• Foothills Trail
• Georgetown to South Park Trail
• Green River North Extension
• Interurban Trail
• Lake to Sound Trail
• Mountains to Sound Greenway
• Pipeline Trail Seattle Waterfront Trail
• Seattle Waterfront Trail
• Sound to Olympics Trail

One of those projects, the Eastrail Project, recently received a $2 million dollar donation from REI and Facebook to pay for the completion of the 42-mile trail.

Related: REI, Facebook Give $2 Million To Eastrail Project

King County points to multiple studies which it says show that regional trail investments like these can lead to several large benefits, including:

• Active transportation has been linked to more jobs per dollar than any other form of transportation.
• Trails in Washington provide up to $5.9 billion in environmental benefits each year.
• Improving access to trails could help close Washington's health gap.

One study even found that, completing a single trail in Pierce County could end up cutting 3 million miles of car travel annually.

The county also notes that several major employers, like the aforementioned REI and Facebook, have put their headquarters alongside trails to give employees easy and healthy options for their work commute.

"Trails give people reliable, healthy, and fun transportation options," said Pierce County Executive Bruce Dammier. "With Leafline you can walk, bike, or roll to transit, and use trails for your entire trip."

Finally, organizers point to one final factor behind their decision to create this coalition and launch such a massive undertaking: the pandemic. The coronavirus pandemic has drastically cut into the number of car commuters across the region, but had the opposite effect on pedestrian and cycling traffic— so now is the time to strike and invest in these trails.

"With trail use at record levels during the pandemic, the need for more trail options is clear.," said Peter Mayer, Deputy Director for Metro Parks Tacoma. "Working together as a broad-based four-county coalition, we can get more done to connect our trails and make them more accessible to everyone."

Learn more about the coalition on their website, leaflinetrails.org.