Agencies Collaborate On New Initiative for Trail Safety

Swamp Rabbit Trail markers to improve emergency response time

GREENVILLE, SC – The City of Greenville Parks and Recreation Department, Greenville City Police Department, Greenville County Sheriff’s Office, Greenville County Recreation District and Greenville County Office of E9-1-1 have collaborated to develop an innovative emergency marker system that includes mile posts and stencils throughout the Swamp Rabbit Trail to help greatly improve trail safety.  

Swamp Rabbit Trail users will now find posts installed every half mile and a two letter code “SR” accompanied by a mile number stenciled every one-tenth of a mile. According to Greenway and Sustainability Manager Brian Graham, the emergency system enables Swamp Rabbit Trail users to easily identify their exact location along the trail. “With this new system, trail users are never more than about 90 yards from a trail marker at anytime, meaning that 9-1-1 operators can more easily, quickly and precisely identify the location of a caller and improve response time and efficiency,” said Graham.

The City’s Parks and Recreation Department was initially approached by the Greenville City Police Department about formulating a plan for the occurrence of emergency situations. The popular trail is used by many beginner bicyclists and pedestrians, some of whom are visiting from out of town. The assembled group of agencies determined that trail users currently lacked the ability to convey an exact location to 9-1-1 operators during an emergency situation. 

This marking project is an excellent example of governmental agencies recognizing a potentially detrimental situation for our folks and working together to provide a positive, viable solution for the good of all Greenville County citizens,” said E9-1-1 Director Rick Blackwell.  “With the entire Swamp Rabbit Trail clearly marked in increments, public safety agencies will now have a much easier time finding people who need help. Additionally, we’ll be able to statistically identify any areas of the trail that may need increased attention.

Future plans include extending the emergency marking system into other trail systems including Falls Park, Cleveland Park and the entire Swamp Rabbit Trail in the county. The trail section between Cleveland Street and McDaniel Avenue is currently not marked due to construction activities. 

About the Swamp Rabbit Trail
The Swamp Rabbit Trail is a multi-jurisdictional, 14-mile pathway that is used by hundreds of thousands of walkers, joggers and bicyclists every year.  The greenway trail, which passes underneath Main Street and the Liberty Bridge as it traverses through downtown Greenville and Falls Park, connects neighborhoods to destinations like the City of Travelers Rest, Furman University, Cleveland Park and Greenville Technical College, among other places.  The Swamp Rabbit Trail is popular among recreational users, but also serves as a vital component of the city’s transportation network.  It is the ‘spine’ of a greenway trail system identified in the City’s Trails & Greenways Master Plan that was adopted in 2008. For more information about the City of Greenville’s trails and greenways, visit www.greenvillesc.gov/ParksRec/Trails.