Mercer County Receives $2.3 Million Grant For Bike Path Project

A transportation project is in the works that will make it easier for people to navigate the western part of Mercer County on two wheels, county officials announced.

Mercer County has received a $2,365,900 federal Regional Transportation Alternatives Program grant through the New Jersey Department of Transportation (NJDOT) for the design and construction of the Mercer County Great Western Bikeway, officials announced.

The bikeway is a bicycle route along County Route 546 — variously known as Washington Crossing-Pennington Road, Pennington-Lawrenceville Road and Franklin Corner Road — and several of its approaches that seeks to maximize connectivity to the existing trail and bike network in the county.

“This project will provide bicycle access to many neighborhoods and recreational facilities in Ewing, Hopewell Township, Pennington and Lawrence,” Mercer County Executive Brian M. Hughes said. “We’ve seen the creation of numerous walking and biking trails in Mercer County, such as the immensely popular Lawrence-Hopewell Trail, and this bikeway will further expand people’s ability to forgo their cars and safely get around.”

The improvements to County Routes 546, 611 (Scotch Road), 624 (Pennington-Rocky Hill Road) and 640 (North Main Street in Pennington) – which may include on-road bicycle lane markings, two-way cycletracks or multi-use paths adjacent to the roadway -- will provide access among Pennington Borough, Ewing Town Center, Ewing Public Library, the Village of Lawrenceville, Brandon Farms, the D&R Canal and Washington Crossing state parks, Mercer Meadows, and the Twin Pines soccer complex, as well as the Johnson Trolley Line Trail, which provides connections to the Lawrence-Hopewell Trail and Lawrence Township’s Village Park.

The next step will be authorization of a contract for the design phase of the project. Detailed final construction costs will be identified during the design process and NJDOT will allocate additional funds, if necessary, according to county officials. A map detailing the project can be found below.