It’s a multi-million dollar project that will connect Kelowna and Vernon with a recreational corridor. On Tuesday, the initiative to build the Okanagan Rail Trail got another financial boost.
The project is receiving a cash infusion of $471,500 under the Government of Canada’s Canada 150 Community Infrastructure Program.
“I want to congratulate all those who are working so hard to bring this legacy project to fruition,” MP Kelowna-Lake Country Stephen Fuhr said. “The Okanagan Rail Trail will connect our communities, allow us to explore the heritage and beauty of the Okanagan and provide an outstanding recreational and tourist destination for many generations to come.”
The funds will help rehabilitate 49.5 kilometres of abandoned CN rail grade to create the rail trail connecting the communities of Vernon, Lake Country and Kelowna with a safe recreation corridor for cyclists and pedestrians.
The Canada 150 Community Infrastructure Program is part of “Canada 150 Celebrates”, the Government of Canada’s celebration of the country’s 150th anniversary of Confederation.
“The communities along the trail are grateful to Community Futures and WD’s Canada 150 program for supporting the development of the trail,” Trail Ambassador Brad Clements said. “By working together, we will finish the trail.”
The Government of Canada is investing in projects that seek to renovate, expand and improve existing community infrastructure, with a focus on recreational facilities, projects that advance a clean growth economy, and projects with a positive impact on Indigenous communities.
On Monday, the Okanagan Rail Trail project received a $777,000 boost from BikeBC, a provincial program that encourages cycling as an important mode of transportation.
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