A lot has to happen for bike/walk trail to happen in Vermilion Parish

(This is a column written by Managing Editor Chris Rosa of the Abbeville Meridional)

At first, the idea sounded great, but the more I thought about it, the less sure I became. 
I learned that a small group of Vermilion Parish residents wants to convert unused railroad tracks into a walking and biking trail. 
The plan is to remove the railroad tracks and create a trail from the Vermilion River in Abbeville to the Delcambre Canal. This initiative is known as “Rails to Trails.”
The goal is to get the state to help pay to remove the tracks and build a walking and biking trail where the tracks once were. 
Will it ever happen? Probably not. 
Here are my thoughts on why it may never happen. A lot of planning needs to be done before one rail is removed.
Environmental studies, community meetings, engineering consultations, DOTD meetings, law enforcement discussions, and meetings with city and government officials are necessary to determine responsibility for funding and maintenance of the trail.
Who will hire a  “Trail Manager?”  A trail manager oversees and maintains the 10-mile stretch of trail.
The trail manager will inform the government entity about any necessary repairs on the walking trail or if a biker has had an accident and plans to file a lawsuit due to injuries. Who is responsible for the maintenance of the trail?
Another million-dollar question is, who will provide walking/bike trail insurance? 
If the rail company gives up the land that the rail sat on, who now owns the land?
These are all questions that need to be answered before the process gets underway. I do not look for any government entity to take the lead on the walking/biking trail.
As a former cyclist, I would like the rails-to-trails idea to cover the entire parish, from Gueydan to Delcambre. 
The bike trail from Gueydan to Abbeville would be perfect because it is rural and has fewer intersections to worry about. However, I wouldn’t say I like the bike trail going through Abbeville because of the intersections. There are 21 intersections from the Vermilion River to John Hardy Drive, an accident between a car and a cyclist waiting to happen. 
With the idea still in the very early stages, a group of Abbeville citizens is against having a walking/biking trail in their backyard or on the side of their house. On Saturday, an organized meeting will occur in Abbeville to figure out how to squash the idea before it starts. 
They do not like the idea of the trail in their backyards or on the side of their houses, and I can not blame them. 
If this bike/walking trail idea begins to take off, some will support it and others will oppose it.
I do not see the Police Jury or the City of Abbeville spending money to help build the trail or to spend money to upkeep the trail.