Blue Route Overview
The Blue Route provincial cycling network will connect Nova Scotia’s communities through designated cycling routes on secondary highways with paved shoulders, low traffic volume roads, hard surfaced trails, and city streets. The concept of the Blue Route is based on the award winning Route Verte in Quebec, which brings in upwards of $200M in tourism revenue each year and is seen as one of the best active transportation networks in the world.
Once completed, the Blue Route will comprise a ~ 3000km network of signed bicycle routes, connecting riders with communities across the province.
Who Benefits from Blue Route?
ALL NOVA SCOTIANS
Blue Route will become an integral part of daily life in communities across Nova Scotia, providing infrastructure for bicyclists of all ages and abilities. Whether bicycling is part of your daily commute, or reserved for weekend excursions, Blue Route makes it easier and safer to enjoy the benefits of a healthy, active lifestyle.
THE PROVINCE
In addition to helping our provincial government achieve its active transportation mandate, thereby improving upon health and activity levels, Blue Route will increase Nova Scotia’s appeal to visitors wanting to explore our province by bicycle.
LOCAL GOVERNMENT
The Blue Route team is working with First Nations, municipalities, and communities to identify new opportunities for making bicycling a more accessible option for transportation and recreation, as well as to promote economic development and tourism growth through additional bicycling initiatives.
LOCAL BUSINESSES
Bicycling has never been more popular worldwide. Blue Route gives local businesses the opportunity to benefit from increased bicycling traffic. For example, businesses could offer services to those who use the network and orient their marketing toward customers who arrive by bicycle.
TRAIL ORGANIZATIONS
Clear and effective way-finding, on trails well suited for bicycles, will encourage more bicyclists to explore the many trails available to them. Collaborating with community trail associations will be fundamental to integrating strategic trails into the Blue Route network.
OPEN ROUTES
Truro Area to Pictou
This segment connects Pictou to the East Mountain in Bible Hill (Truro Area) along segments of the provincial road network (Route 376 and Trunk 4) and the Jitney Trail (co-managed by the Town of Pictou and the Pictou County Trails Association). The entire planned route is 56 km in length, which includes 53km on provincial roadways and ~3km on the Jitney Trail.
Masstown to Wallace
The second segment of the Blue Route to open, this route connects Masstown to Wallace. It is a 55km stretch of road weaving through the beautiful Wentworth Valley that features freshly paved shoulders on Nova Scotia Trunk 4 and a shared roadway on the quiet Route 307.
Rum Runners Trail
The Rum Runners Trail is a 112 km trail constructed over the former rail line from Halifax to Lunenburg. It is a shared-use trail with a hard packed crusher dust surface suitable for cycling on hybrid-style bicycles. The trail merges six community trails: the Beechville Lakeside Timberlea Trail, St. Margaret’s Bay Trail, Aspotogan Trail, Chester Connector, Dynamite Trail, and Bay to Bay Trail. The Rum Runners Trail can be accessed in Halifax from the Chain of Lakes Trail, which is a 7 km paved surface non-motorized use trail.
Celtic Shores Coastal Trail
The Celtic Shores Coastal Trail is a 91 km trial constructed over the former rail line from Port Hastings to the Town of Inverness. The section of trail currently designated under the Blue Route runs from Troy Station to the Town of Inverness. It is a shared-use trail with hard packed crusher dust with a hard packed crusher dust surface suitable for cycling on hybrid-style bicycles or mountain bikes.
Harvest Moon Trailway
The Harvest Moon Trailway is a 110 km rails to trails route running from Annapolis Royal – Grand Pré National Historic Site. The trail ends for a short distance in the Town of Kentville where the streets were built over top of the old rail line. The trail is shared use with a crusher dust surface from Annapolis Royal to just outside of the Town of Kentville, where it becomes a non-motorized trail with a crusher dust surface.
