Lea Kahn, Staff Writer
Aiming to find out what its users want, the Lawrence Hopewell Trail backers are seeking feedback – ahead of a planned community meeting in November – through an online questionnaire.
The purpose of the 20-question survey, which will be open through the end of August, is to get information from members of the community about their use of the trail, as well as their perceptions and experiences.
The questionnaire is available at www.lhtrail.org.
The 22-mile-long Lawrence Hopewell Trail, which has been in the works since 2002, is about 90 percent complete. The trail links Lawrence and Hopewell townships, providing an off-road path for bicyclists and pedestrians.
The survey seeks feedback and idea for future needs and initiatives for the Lawrence Hopewell Trail. Those answers will help the Lawrence Hopewell Trail Corp., which is the nonprofit group that oversees the trail, to plan for the community meeting tentatively set for November.
The questionnaire asks respondents for the name of the town in which they live, as well as their age group and household size. It asks them about their primary use of the trail – walking, bicycling or running – and when they generally use the trail.
It also asks how often they use the trail, and for how long – a few minutes or a couple of hours, or somewhere in between. It asks respondents to describe their favorite part of the trail.
Another survey question asks respondents to prioritize those aspects that the Lawrence Hopewell Trail Corp. should focus on – from completing the trail, to advocacy and fundraising, connecting it to other towns, community rides and events, and maintenance and amenities.
It also asks respondents whether they have participated in any of the community events, such as the Full Moon Ride, Trail or Treat, REI OptOutside, ribbon-cutting ceremonies, Lawrence Community Day, Pennington Day, Hopewell Harvest Fair and Earth Day.
And the questionnaire asks respondents whether they would be interested in volunteering with the Friends of the Lawrence Hopewell Trail.
