ALBANY — Activity on the Empire State Trail, the 750-mile network of canal trails, greenways and public roads that traverses the state from Buffalo to New York City, generates nearly $2 billion in economic output annually, supporting nearly 10,000 jobs, according to a new study commissioned by Parks & Trails New York.
The study, released to the public on Tuesday, is the most comprehensive yet of the economic impact of the Empire State Trail, according to Paul Steely White, the executive director of Parks & Trails New York, an Albany nonprofit that supports and advocates for state parks.
The Empire State Trail is the largest statewide, multiuse trail system in the U.S., bringing together the Erie and Champlain canal trail systems with the Hudson River Valley Greenway Trail that goes from New York City to Washington County. The trail plan was proposed in 2017 when Andrew Cuomo was governor, and was completed three years later using $200 million allocated in the state budget…