A new section of the Vandalia Trail begins the quest of connecting Clayton to Amo .
With a huge boost of financial assistance from the federal American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 , we have been able to make significant progress in connecting the towns of Clayton and Amo by way of the Vandalia Trail .
Working with Align Civil Engineering Consultants in Greencastle on the trail design and construction inspection , we have split this expansion project into two phases .
In the first phase , access to Lambert Park in Clayton will be created on the south side of the park by way of a concrete boardwalk and a paved section of trail that takes trail users to the north side of County Road 500 South and then west to Michigan Street in Clayton . Included with this phase of construction is a marked improvement to the drainage system in the area .
We have hired J . R . Bowling , LLC out of Greencastle to make this design a reality , and they began construction in the fall with an anticipated completion date in mid-2025 .
Once the first phase is complete , the second phase will add approximately 2 miles of paved trail along the north side of County Road 500 South from Michigan Street , west toward Amo , to County Road 250 West . A major reforestation project will also take place along the trail corridor in conjunction with the Central Indiana Land Trust , while still allowing agricultural equipment and vehicles access to the farm fields and residences on that side of the road .
Ultimately , this trail expansion will provide safe passage for pedestrians and bicyclists along County Road 500 South – also greatly reducing road hazards for automobile traffic – and we will
18 • www . HendricksCountyParks . org continue to work to find a suitable means of completely connecting Clayton to Amo via the Vandalia Trail .
The Vandalia Trail is part of the National Road Heritage Trail ( NRHT ) System , which is one of the State of Indiana ’ s Visionary Trail projects . The ultimate goal is for the NRHT to stretch across the entire state from Terre Haute to Richmond .
We currently operate a 4.1-mile-long stretch of the Vandalia Trail from Amo , west through Coatesville , to the Hendricks-Putnam County Line , where the trail connects with People Pathways and extends all the way to Greencastle .
Plainfield Parks & Recreation operates the section of the Vandalia Trail that runs through town limits . Eventually , the goal is to connect our section of trail to their section , thus spanning the entire width of Hendricks County .