Next phase of Monon South Trail opens in Salem
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The Indiana Department of Natural Resources has cut the ribbon on the latest segment of the Monon South Trail in southern Indiana.
The 3.3-mile segment is located in the Washington County town of Salem and extends the length of the trail open to the public to a total of more than 12 miles.
Plans for the Monon South Trail were first announced in January 2023. The trail is slated to span 62.3 miles on the abandoned Monon Railroad, running through Clark, Floyd, Washington, Orange and Lawrence counties.
The DNR has previously opened segments in the towns of Mitchell, Orleans, and Borden.
“The Monon South Trail is opening new sections at a rapid pace, with this new section in Salem opening just weeks after Borden’s trail section opened,” Dale Brier, deputy director of community grants and trails for Indiana State Parks, said in a news release. “At DNR, we’re proud to financially support this trail’s construction, which will eventually be Indiana’s longest.”
The first phase of the Monon South Trail project is expected to be complete by August with more than 20 miles of trail.
The Monon Railroad went into operation in 1854, and trains were last operated on the rail line in 2008. The line was abandoned in 2018 by its most recent operator, CSXT. The corridor was acquired by the city of New Albany and Radius Indiana to turn it into a recreational trail.
The project is being supported by nearly $30 million from the Next Level Trails program, with $5.5 million being used to acquire the property. Radius Indiana said it has committed $650,000 to the project, and the Indiana Uplands Region has pledged $1 million in READI funding.