Plans and Studies Relevant to
Marple and Newtown Townships
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Marple Township Trails Master Plan (2020) gathers and presents the possibilities for trails large and small in Marple Township. Click here to see it. |
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Newtown Township Greenway and Open Space Network Plan (2020) lays out a possible trail network for Newtown Township, Delaware County. You can access it on the township website: www.newtowntownship.org/383/Greenways-and-Trails |
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Delaware County Open Space, Recreation, and Greenway Plan, adopted by Delaware County Council in April, 2015. This plan features detailed improvement plans for the major county-owned parks, and it also puts forth a conceptual county Primary Trail Network that is one level more local than "The Circuit" multi-county regional trail network. This study is posted on the Delaware County website: www.delcopa.gov/planning/pubs/delco2035/OpenSpaceandRecreationPlan.html |
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Delaware County Bicycle Plan (2009), prepared by the Delaware County Planning Department. This earlier study sets forth a recommended prospective network of bicycling facilities throughout the county. You can read it on the county website: www.delcopa.gov/planning/pubs/BicyclePlan.html |
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Marple Township Comprehensive Plan (2007). This plan includes a map showing a planned on-road bicycle network within the township. It characterized conditions in the township at that time as "unfriendly" to walking pedestrians and to bicyclists, and set forth policies and recommendations to improve the situation. The circulation map showing the proposed bicycle routes is
here. A 2015 General Addendum and a 2015 Recreation Plan Addendum have been issued. You can read them all on the township website: www.marpletwp.com/Comprehensive-Plan.html |
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Newtown Township Comprehensive Plan (2016). One of four major themes that came out of the public participation process was "trails and sidewalks to enable walking for both recreation and for access to destinations within and outside of the Township." Establishing a network of interconnected hiking and biking trails within the township, connecting it to neighboring municipalities, and
establishing bike paths and bike lanes along selected roads for commuting and recreational purposes became plan objectives. Read it on the township website: www.newtowntownship.org/181/Comprehensive-Plan |
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A fascinating study on the economic value of open space and trails was conducted in 2010 for The Delaware Valley Regional Planning Commission (the multi-state regional planning organization for the Greater Philadelphia area) and the GreenSpace Alliance by the Economy League of Greater Philadelphia, Econsult Corporation and the Keystone Conservation Trust. The researchers conducted seven case studies, using various open space and trail locations in southeastern Pennsylvania, to determine various economic benefits of them. All but one had positive economic benefits, and the exception was determined to essentially be statistically a "wash." It found that the Radnor Trail raised home property values by $69,139 within a quarter-mile of the trail, compared to comparable Radnor Township homes farther than a quarter-mile from the trail. You can read the study on the DVRPC website: www.dvrpc.org/openspace/value/pdf/OpenSpaceReport-FirstEdition.pdf |