Four miles added to Eastside Rail Corridor Trail

Four miles of trail have been opened on the King County Eastside Rail Corridor Trail, linking Gene Coulon Park in Renton to Newcastle Beach Park in Bellevue.

With its opening, the segment joins the 16-mile-long corridor that runs from Redmond and Kirkland in the north down to Renton. Another one mile portion of the trail was opened last June which connected Bellevue to the Cross Kirkland Corridor.

The Eastside Rail Corridor is maintained by King County and Eastside cities including Kirkland, Bellevue and Redmond. Puget Sound Energy and Sound Transit also manage the corridor. It runs along a decommissioned railway line from Woodinville to Renton which was formerly owned by the BNSF Railway Company. BNSF sold it to the Port of Seattle in 2009. Shortly thereafter the port sold interest to the county and cities along its path.

Improvements along the corridor have gone in tandem with I-405 improvements. Improvements include letting the state Department of Transportation build a bicycle and pedestrian bridge over I-405 on the Eastside Rail Corridor near the Mercer Slough and constructing two and a half miles of paved trail in Bellevue.