The City of Winston-Salem opened the first segment of the Salem Parkway Multi-Use Path — dubbed the “Twin City Trail” by Winston-Salem Mayor Allen Joines — at an event near Liberty Street on Thursday. The nearly mile-long, mixed-use trail promises to connect areas in and around downtown Winston-Salem with pedestrian and micromobility options.
The path runs parallel to the Salem Parkway between West Fourth Street and Liberty Street. It connects several crossings over the parkway, including at Peters Creek Parkway, the Green Street Pedestrian Bridge near Truist Stadium and the Winston-Salem Strollway that already links downtown to nearby Old Salem. The route will eventually extend from W. 4th Street to Lockland Avenue and nearby Atrium Health Wake Forest Baptist Hospital west of downtown.
“The main thing was providing access to the hospital for healthcare reasons,” said Will Cave, a civil engineer for the City of Winston working on the project. “People who have limited access to cars so they can ride their bikes or walk.”
Thursday’s ribbon-cutting event concludes the first of a two-phase project — part of greater improvements to the Salem Parkway, formerly I-40 (Business). After receiving $1.6 million in federal funding, the $5.5 million pathway project broke ground at a ceremony last summer attended by former U.S. Secretary Pete Buttigieg and former North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper. Construction involved the North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT), Winston-Salem-based Creative Corridors Coalition, local interest groups and planning agencies on the improvements.
The project marks a step toward the city’s greater connectivity and mobility goals outlined in its 2023 downtown plan. Members of Winston-Salem City Council touted the path as an opportunity to get people moving and better connect destinations in and around downtown.
Cyclist Keith Pope says he looks forward to another bike route into Winston-Salem and to other nearby trails. He feels such projects make Winston-Salem a more bikeable city, and hopes that its location above a major thoroughfare like Salem Parkway will make it discoverable for new users.
“We’ve found that’s the biggest issue with these things — there are trails out there, it’s just hard to find them,” Pope said. “Would it be more conspicuous, people would say ‘oh, I can ride here.’”
Cave says the path’s next segment toward the hospital is about “30%” designed and is expected to break ground by 2027.
