Imagine a commute without the worry of traffic jams, potholes or detours, a path to town that’s nearby, maintained and linked to routes just like it all over the state. 

That’s the Cross Vermont Trail Association’s vision — to create a web of trails for bikers and walkers to have easy access and safe travels between north-central Vermont towns. 

“The goal of the work we do is to have trails that connect, that go where people want to go,” Executive Director Greg Western said, explaining how the organization joins existing trails with connector paths like jigsaw pieces.

Groups like Cross Vermont are increasingly tailoring their work to people outside the usual biking and hiking crowd who want an alternative to roadways: commuters.

“Our whole mission is trails that go somewhere,” Western said. “The whole point is that you could use it to commute.” 

One example: The group built a bridge over the Winooski River, which Western said “gets you a couple miles off of Route 2.” Since 2019, there have been at least 18 crashes involving pedestrians or cyclists on Route 2 in Chittenden County, according to the state Agency of Transportation’s crash database.

“It’s just a way to cut off miles of crappy highway with shoulders and people speeding,” Western said. “People use bits and pieces of it.” 

Cindi Wight, who directs Burlington’s parks and recreation department, uses the city’s bike path to commute to work. 

“It’s just a nice way to start your day when you have this green corridor that you’re biking through,” she said. 

During the winter time, her department plows the western side of the Greenway Path, allowing people to ski on the east side and walk, run or bike on the other. 

“People who are commuting can use the path, but people who want to ski can use the snow,” she said, adding later, “A nice way to extend the biking season is to add winter biking.” 

She encouraged people to try it. 

Local Motion, a statewide advocacy group for bikers and walkers based in Burlington, each month hosts “EZ Breezy Rides,” outings meant to teach people routes around the city, especially first-time bike commuters. 

“If you just know where you’re going, have a plan and action before you head out the door. It feels a lot more comfortable,” said Val Cyr, a communications specialist at Local Motion. The organization’s office sits on the Burlington Bike Path, which many people from its team use to commute. 

Burlington Wildways is an organization that connects natural areas and paths around Vermont’s largest city. It provides education programs for those interested in managing, advocating for and teaching people about natural and wild spaces. 

Alongside that, the group maintains a 5.6 miles of linked trails that run from Salmon Hole Park to the Ethan Allen Homestead, both natural and paved. 

Patrick Dunseith, a member of Wildways and a regular bike commuter, is also a land manager at the Intervale. One of the trails at the property is a 2-mile puzzle piece in both the Wildways and Cross Vermont networks. 

Dunseith hopes to see more lighting on paths as it gets darker earlier, as well as see people keeping the trails cleaner. 

“With natural trails or social trails, they’re spaces that we can just look at like, ‘This is somebody’s responsibility.’ Or we can look at it as, ‘This is a collective resource, and I’m part of this place too as a user. It’s my responsibility as well,’” he said. 

Retirees Gail and David O’Brien, two East Hardwick, Vt., residents in their 70s, are frequent travelers on their local section of the Lamoille Valley Rail Trail — a 93-mile path from St. Johnsbury, Vt., to Swanton, Vt. 

Biking for about 3½ miles on the trail, the couple can get to Hardwick to go grocery shopping, attend town meetings and volunteer at the Hardwick Food Pantry, where they ride to and from every Monday. 

“We try to err on the side of using our bikes as much as we can,” David said. “It’s just knowledge because it’s a beautiful section of the trail.” 

Kate Kampner is a reporter with Community News Service, part of the University of Vermont’s Reporting & Documentary Storytelling program.