With recent purchases involving CSX Transportation and Industrial Resources, the City of Fairmont has now acquired approximately 2.5 miles of corridor along the West Fork River to extend the West Fork River Trail from the Norway Trestle to the Beltline Neighborhood! This opportunity has also been made possible by the City’s numerous partners: Rails-to-Trails Conservancy, Mon River Trails Conservancy, MCPARC, WV Department of Environmental Protection, West Virginia Land Stewardship Corporation, U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, West Virginia Brownfields, Marion County Chamber of Commerce, Convention & Visitors Bureau of Marion County, and many more. Special thanks to MCPARC for all of the amazing work they already do on the West Fork River Trail and MC Trail here in Marion County.

This project is part of the larger Parkersburg to Pittsburgh Corridor and the even larger Industrial Heartlands Trail Network.  More information on those larger initiatives: Download the P2P Feasibility Study .
Fairmont is currently one of four gaps remaining in West Virginia.  Design of the trail and it’s amenities is expected to begin in the coming months. The start of construction has not been determined at this time but will occur sometime after the design is completed. Design will include creating new public access points and a trailhead in the Beltline Neighborhood.

Please watch the City’s social media pages and website for more information as it becomes available.

Note: The proposed routes shown in the map are from conceptual plans. Exact and final placement of the rail trail may vary as design and implementation occur.