Border-to-Border Trail

The Border-to-Border (B2B) Trail is a partially constructed non-motorized trail system in Washtenaw County, Michigan. The system is planned to cover approximately 55 mi across Washtenaw County, along the Huron River.

Planning for the B2B began in 1984, as the Huron River Greenway, a 35 mile project headed by Washtenaw County. Since its inception, and its renaming to the Border-to-Border trail in the 1990s, the project has expanded its scope and incorporated additional funding from public and private sources. When completed, the Border-to-Border Trail system will link Ypsilanti, Ann Arbor, Dexter, and Chelsea with off-street, non-motorized pathways for walking, bicycling, and other recreational activities.

The Border-to-Border Trail connects to multiple existing parks, and incorporates their trail systems. In addition to its route through parks, the B2B also includes segments built adjacent to rural roads, new and historic bridges, and segments on city streets.

History
Planning for a non-motorized trail along the Huron River began in the 1980s, with a City of Ann Arbor study for a "Huron River Greenway." The Washtenaw County Parks and Recreation Commission took over the project in the late 1990s, and by 2001, the Border-to-Border Trail was envisioned as a 35 mi trail from Hudson Mills Metropark to Ford Lake.

From its inception, the B2B was planned to utilize existing parks and rights-of-way adjacent to the Huron River. In addition to the existing infrastructure, Washtenaw County secured $10 million of funding to construct connections between existing pieces of infrastructure. With the cost of trail construction for even the initial plans far exceeding that sum, construction proceeded slowly, with the first new trail segment opening in 2001 in Ypsilanti.

The scope and pace of the Border-to-Border Trail project increased in the mid-2010s, with the passage of a county roads millage that included dedicated funding for nonmotorized transportation projects. The state of Michigan recognized the B2B project as a component of the statewide Iron Belle Trail in 2015, bringing additional visibility to the project.

The mid-2010s also brought additional private funding to the trail, with expansion plans for a segment from Dexter west to Chelsea. The Huron Waterloo Pathways Initiative, a private foundation that began in Chelsea, raised money from businesses in Chelsea before partnering with the county to accelerate trail construction.

In 2016, champion triathlete Karen McKeachie died in a collision on Dexter-Chelsea Road during a training bicycle ride. McKeachie's death led to renewed advocacy for additional bicycle safety measures in the county, and a portion of the newly-constructed B2B trail near Dexter is named in McKeachie's memory.

Future
The total cost of constructing the trail was estimated at $30 million in 2019, with additional fundraising still under way to fund the entire project.

The most difficult portion of trail construction will be the segment from Hudson Mills Metropark east to Bandemer Park, which closely follows the Huron River and Huron River Drive. , planning is underway for this segment, which will include a tunnel under the Michigan Line railroad tracks.

The B2B is planned to extend northwards from its two branches in western Washtenaw County, connecting to the Lakelands Trail. The extensions, to Stockbridge and Pinckney, will form a 29 mi loop in Washtenaw and Livingston counties. Additional plans for trail construction in Washtenaw County include extensions south to the existing trail systems in Manchester, Saline, and Pittsfield Township.

Route description
The Chelsea branch of the B2B originates in Dexter Township, near the Livingston County line in the northwest corner of the county. The trail follows M-52 south to Chelsea city limits, deviating through Timbertown Park. The B2B uses city streets through Chelsea, and heads due east, paralleling Dexter-Chelsea Road and the Michigan Line railroad tracks to Dexter.

The Hudson Mills branch of the B2B originates north of the Hudson Mills Metropark and proceeds south through the park, connecting to the Chelsea branch at Mill Creek Park in Dexter.

From Dexter east to Ann Arbor, the B2B follows Huron River Drive in a general southeasterly direction, connecting to Delhi Metropark. The B2B enters Ann Arbor city limits near Barton Nature Area, and is proposed to cross under the Michigan Line tracks in a tunnel to Bandemer Nature Area. From Bandemer east, the trail utilizes city park land along the river, and runs close to the University of Michigan Hospital and the Ann Arbor VA Hospital. Near the VA Hospital, the trail enters Gallup Park, and runs east to Geddes Dam at the Ann Arbor city limits.

The B2B recrosses the Huron River twice at Geddes Dam and Dixboro Road, passing through the campus of Washtenaw Community College. The trail follows the northern edge of the Trinity Health Ann Arbor Hospital campus, and heads due south to the athletic campus of Eastern Michigan University, at Ypsilanti city limits. At the George Gervin GameAbove Center, the trail turns due east and follows a utility right-of-way to the EMU main campus, and through the campus to a path parallel to North Huron River Drive. The B2B uses city streets to Depot Town, where it enters Frog Island and Riverside Parks, and passes through the southern edge of the Water Street site. The trail emerges from parkland at Grove Street, near the site of Woodruff's Grove, the first European settlement in Washtenaw County.

East of Ypsilanti city limits, in Ypsilanti Charter Township, the B2B follows Grove Street along the north bank of Ford Lake, heading south into North Hydro Park at Ford Lake Dam. The trail terminates at Grove Road and Rawsonville Road, at the Wayne County line. A connection is planned into Van Buren Township, ultimately forming a part of the Iron Belle Trail towards Belle Isle.