The Columbia Parks and Recreation Commission unanimously approved a plan to transform part of the COLT Railroad into a trail on March 19.

The proposed development would use "railbanking" to create a 2.5 mile trail on a preserved, unused piece of the rail corridor along Paris Road, between Rogers St. and East Brown Station Road. By leaving the rail corridors in place, the city would keep them viable for future rail or transportation projects.

The exact format of the trail would be decided at a later date if the project is approved by Columbia City Council.

Parks and Recreation Director Gabe Huffington said this area had been designated as needing critical safety improvement for pedestrians. In 2024, the city's Utilities Department sent out a statement after a number of people began walking and jogging on the COLT Railroad tracks, according to previous Missourian reporting. Huffington believes a trail would help make transportation safer.

"One of the main key factors they identified was the construction of the COLT Trail and the opportunity for us to be able to implement that trail to help alleviate some of that pedestrian traffic that's associated with Route B," Huffington said at the meeting. 

The railbanking process could take multiple years, with approval still in early stages. Even after City Council deliberation, if the project is approved, the proposal must go before the federal Surface Transportation Board.

Huffington says the approval process alone can take more than two years. The commission aims to begin construction in either 2030 or 2031.

He said trail development would be funded by the Parks Sales Tax, with $3 million allocated for the trail's construction.

"The use of rail corridor... is a very cost-effective way for us to be able to build a trail," Huffington said. 

The railroad, formally named the Columbia Terminal Railroad, is one of the few railroads nationally to be owned by a city. Parts of the track are still operational, but the train only runs when needed rather than running on a fixed schedule.

The piece of the railroad that may be railbanked has not been in use since 2015, when the city's power plant transitioned from coal to natural gas and eliminated the need for shipping coal on the route.

The COLT Trail wouldn't be Columbia's first foray into railbanking. Both the MKT and Katy trails originated as railbanking projects.

Parks and Recreation Commission recommends COLT Trail to City Council