Silver Comet Trail (CSX)

[Jeff Smith]

Looking to connect the already existing Silver Comet Trail in Cobb County to the Beltline in Atlanta: cobbcountycourier.com

Trail resources: http://www.cobbtrailplan.com/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

Connect The Comet Sees Progress In Mission To Connect Silver Comet With Atlanta Beltline
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Perhaps the most obvious positive is that Cobb County’s government has listed a 3.4-mile Silver Comet Trail extension as part of a list of trail initiatives at CobbTrailPlan.com. The extension would bring the trail inside I-285 and nearly to Moore’s Mill Road in Atlanta.

“The draft plan was posted in early March,” said Cobb County DOT Planning Division Manager Eric Meyer. “Connecting the Silver Comet, the granddaddy of metro Atlanta trails, with the Beltline is an obvious project that a lot of folks would benefit from. It’ll be exciting to move forward when CSX is willing to sell or lease the rail line to the state.”
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From the Cobb/Fulton County line, just three miles would link the Silver Comet to a northwestern portion of the Atlanta Beltline, opening access for bike riders to travel directly from Alabama right into downtown if they so choose.
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Everything appears to hinge on CSX, which is negotiating a new long-term rail lease with the state of Georgia, because the company’s unused rail lines constitute the most obvious connection between the Silver Comet and Beltline.

The lease runs through the end of 2019, but Burks hopes to see it renegotiated this year, with CSX granting access to the unused track needed to make a connection. Unfortunately, there was nothing solid to report during Sunday’s meeting.
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