Hunterdon County’s fragmented network of trails, paths, and bike lanes would expand from 47 miles to 280 miles with the addition of 14 corridors, connecting employment centers, transit, and downtowns within the largely rural and suburban county.
That’s the ultimate vision of the Hunterdon County Bicycle Plan, completed through the NJTPA’s Subregional Studies Program 2025-26 cycle.
Katherine Fullerton, Supervising Planner for Hunterdon County, presented the final study in a presentation to the NJTPA’s Joint Project Prioritization and Planning and Economic Development Committee (PPC/PEDC) meeting on August 17.
Much of the impetus for the plan came from the County’s 2018 strategic park and open space plan and recent growth management plan update, according to Fullerton. “These documents stress the important value our residents place on connecting with our preserved open space,” she said.
Bicycling in Hunterdon County is primarily recreational relative to its potential to serve as an everyday mode of transportation but its mix of topography makes it a popular destination for bicycle tourism, whether rural scenic roads or off-road biking.
The starting point was a desire to make connections between trails and open space. Local knowledge, gained through a lot of public engagement, was key to finding preferred routes, Fullerton said.
The final plan is based on extensive data analysis and community engagement. It’s a “visionary plan not a construction plan,” Fullerton said, identifying where improvements are needed, what types, and how to advance them.
Extensive public outreach revealed people want a safer, more connected network in Hunterdon County. “There’s a demand for trails and side paths and safe connections and crossings across key intersections,” Fullerton said.
The plan aligns with the Hunterdon County Local Safety Action Plan, NJTPA’s Regional Active Transportation Plan, and regional connectivity goals. It emphasizes safety and mobility along with everyday travel, she said, adding that implementation requires coordination across county, municipalities, and state agencies.
Hunterdon County Bicycle Plan Goals
Fullerton described the plans “modest yet ambitious goals:”
- Prioritize everyday mobility and personal travel by bicycle
- Improve safety, access, sand mobility for all travelers
- Develop the bicycle network by building new trails and on-road bicycle facilities and prioritizing improvements on county-owned roads and lands
- Work collaboratively with municipal and state partners
- Emphasize improvements for vulnerable roadway users and underserved communities
- Support recreation, tourism, local business, and healthy lifestyles
- Adopt supportive policies and strategies to advance implementation of the bicycle plan and network
Public surveys found that 62 percent of trips are recreational but demand and interest exists for everyday trips conducted by bicycle. “Destinations exist, the connections are missing,” Fullerton said. Route planning focused on connecting between existing trails and making connections within more developed communities, such as town centers, transit, parks, schools, and employment centers, which are usually found on local highways.
Many existing facilities were designed to outdated standards that do not meet current requirements, Fullerton said. The 14 corridors would use a mix of facility types using local connections in more built-up communities Trails and side paths were critical elements for closing the gap between two county trails.
Road diet and lane diet design approaches were not feasible as our rights-of-way are narrow. “We don’t have enough pavement.”
Most of the bicycle facilities proposed are well known but a rural scenic bikeway is a new type of facility to this project. It’s an acknowledgement of low-speed, low-traffic routes that bicyclists already are using but that are too narrow for bike lanes, according to Fullerton. No improvements are proposed for these routes beyond “Share the Road” language as long as speeds are less than 35 MPH.
The recommended implementation emphasizes practical and incremental progress, according to Fullerton. “The plan allows Hunterdon County to move from a fragmented trail system to a series of connected corridors attractive and useful for bicyclists of all abilities,” she said. “The designed trail network is a safer and improved network.”
The bike plan is expected to be adopted as part of the County’s overall master plan later this fall.
The final plan can be found on the Hunterdon County Bicycle Plan website.
A recording of the PPC/PEDC meeting and presentation can be found here.