As NC State Parks prioritizes its property acquisition needs for its parks and trails and as funding opportunities arise to purse right-of-way along the corridor, a more in-depth analysis of the Neuse River Trail Clayton to Smithfield corridor is needed to advance the Neuse River Trail Extension into its next phase of project development. This feasibility study will evaluate the potential route scenarios along NC-42, Buffalo Rd and the Neuse River and most importantly, identify parcels for acquisition.

Nash County as the Lead Planning Agency (LPA), through the Upper Coastal Plain Rural Planning Organization (RPO), will engage an NCDOT pre-qualified planning consultant to conduct a corridor study to determine the feasibility of constructing the Neuse River Trail extension (MST and ECG corridor) from the Town of Clayton to the Town of Smithfield, primarily along NC-42 and Buffalo Rd with routing alternatives along the Neuse River. The project will include:

• Committee, stakeholder and public engagement, including the development of a strategic engagement plan to coordinate with landowners, hosting steering committee meetings, stakeholder meetings and public meetings at regular intervals throughout the planning process, and coordinating with project partners: NCDOT, RPO and local government staff.
• Existing conditions analysis, including extensive GIS analysis with base mapping, parcelby-parcel analysis, and examination of environmental features and topography.
• Alternative trail route scenarios with the identification of landowner and acquisition challenges, road and stream crossings, and environmental and permitting constraints.
• Preferred route development, including the development of acquisition strategies, planning-level cost estimates, and project phasing.
• Development of a final plan document with implementation action steps and funding resources. The results of this study are intended to be incorporated into the bicycle and pedestrian components for the Johnston County Comprehensive Transportation Plan.