A groundbreaking ceremony was recently held to mark the start of construction of a missing link in the Schuylkill River Bike Trail.

The Urban Engineers-designed, 3,800-foot-long section between Falls Bridge and Ridge Avenue will connect the lower Wissahickon and Manayunk recreation trails to the Kelly Drive path. This will enable bikers to travel, virtually traffic-free, approximately 16 miles from the Montgomery County line at Northwestern Avenue to Love Park in Center City. The link also connects the Schuylkill River Bike Trail with the Lower Wissahickon Trail through the Wissahickon Valley to the
City line.

Speakers at the ceremony included Philadelphia Mayor Michael Nutter and Parks and Recreation Commissioner Michael DiBernardinis.

The new link is the latest in a series of sections of the bike trail that were designed and/or inspected by Urban.

Two other Urban-designed sections will be under construction in the near future: Lock Street to Shawmont Avenue and Shawmont Avenue to the Montgomery County Line.