HTT Construction
On Work in Progress
Latest News About HTT
E-Bike Policy
PERMITTED: On the Hanover Trolley Trail, only Class-1 (pedal-assisted) bicycles are permitted.
NOT-PERMITTED: On the Hanover Trolley Trail, the following are not permitted:
Fuel powered and battery powered mobility devices (including E-bikes) that:
- weighs over 99 pounds
- motor is greater than 750 watts or 1 horsepower
- pedals are not operational
- motor provides assistance when rider is not pedaling
- maximum speed of pedal assist has capability to exceeds 20 mph on level ground
- operator of bike is less than 16 years of age
- there is a throttle on the bike
Construction
In June 2008, construction began to build two sections of the Hanover Trolley Trail (HTT) using the MetEd electric utility corridor. Under a long-standing license agreement between the utility and the County of York, the corridor was available for recreation trail uses. Approximately 1 mile in Hanover Borough and approx. ¾ mile in Spring Grove and Jackson Township opened to the public in Fall 2008 and met with immediate public support and use.
In 2012, construction began to extend these two disjointed sections of the Hanover Trolley Trail, again making use of the MetEd electric utility corridor. The Spring Grove-Jackson Township section extended to Martin Road; the Hanover Borough section extended through neighboring Penn Township to Gitts Run Road. Benches, a picnic table, and other amenities were added to these sections. Three parking lots now provide access, as York County Rail Trail Authority sought additional funding to connect the two sections.
With the purchase of 8.5 miles of dormant rail line from Genesee & Wyoming Railroad in 2020, trail construction was able to increase. While the HTT remains in two disconnected sections, the western section from Hanover now stretches to Jacobs Mill Road and includes the restoration of Oil Creek. The eastern section now stretches from Main Street in Spring Grove Borough to Sunnyside Road in Jackson Township. A parking lot along RT 116 in Heidelberg Township will be constructed in 2016.
Additional funding is being sought to connect these two sections, making the HTT a long-distance trail to complement the County’s Heritage Rail Trail. Another study is planned to one day connect these two long-distance trails into a premier York County Rail Trail System.
History of The York Hanover Trolley Line
In the early 1900s, the trolley lines of the York Railway Company served the needs of many county residents for both business and leisure travel. Weekday routes served daily commuters, while weekends featured special cars to picnic groves, churches and shops.
Construction of the York and Hanover trolley line began on May 1, 1907.
The “Hanover Fast Line” opened on February 29, 1908 and provided an efficient transportation link from York’s little-known, outlying communities such as Sunnyside, Bairs, Menges Mills, and Jacobs Mill to the growing towns of Spring Grove and Hanover.
The popularity of the automobile doomed trolley transport, and service to Hanover ended in 1938.
Trail Feasibility Study
A 2003 study, conducted for the York County Rail Trail Authority, concluded that 85% of the original 16.5-mile trolley corridor remained under the ownership of Metropolitan Edison Company and was suitable for trail development.
The study also recommended that development begin with two sections: (1) 4.5 miles linking Menges Mills to Bair Station and located in Jackson Township and Spring Grove Borough (2) 1.5 miles from Hanover Borough to the Penn Township/Heidelberg Township Line.
Rail Acquisition
In December 2017, negotiations began between the York County Rail Trail Authority and Genesee & Wyoming for the acquisition of two sections of York Railway dormant rail line, totaling 8.5 miles and located east and west of Spring Grove, PA. (See bold green line on the map below.) A grant was received from PA Department of Conservation and Natural Resources, with required matching funds received from the County of York, FirstEnergy Foundation, the Warehime Foundation, York County Open Space & Land Preservation Program, York County Community Foundation, and individual donors.
The acquisition was completed in December 2020, and another PA Department of Conservation and Natural Resources grant has provided $300,000 to complete the design of approximately 6 miles of the dormant rail corridor. This design will be completed in several sections over 3-4 years.
In early 2021, design and permitting began for the section of the rail corridor that stretches from Main Street (RT 116) in Spring Grove Borough eastward toward Stoverstown Road in the village of Bair. In June 2022, the first section of trail was built on the rail corridor – a 0.3 mile section from Main St. in Spring Grove that connects to the previously constructed section on the MetEd utility corridor. And by the end of 2022, the rails were removed from the 8.5 miles of dormant rail line, netting $406,000 for the York County Rail Trail Authority to begin seeking large state and federal grants that require matching funds. This strategy has begun to show results, with a $700,000 PA DCNR award, a $1M PA Local Share grant award, and a $110,000 tourism grant from Explore York. These funds will allow for a 2.1-mile section to be built in 2023, extending the Spring Grove section eastward to Sunnyside Rd.
Additional funding sources continue to be identified and sought in order to meet an expected $10 million cost to construct both sections east and west of Spring Grove.