Friendship State Trail

As part of the nationwide effort to expand outdoor recreational opportunities, Ayres has completed designs for about 200 miles of bicycle and pedestrian trails, and our structural engineers have designed more than 20 bridges, underpasses, and tunnels for recreational trail projects. One of the most successful projects is the Friendship State Trail in eastern Wisconsin. Ayres has been involved with the design, construction, and improvement of the trail since its inception in 2003. To date, Ayres has provided services on several Friendship State Trail construction phases carried out through 2015.

Brillion to Forest JunctionFrom 2003 through 2006, Calumet County retained Ayres for the design, bidding, and construction of approximately 4 miles of crushed aggregate recreational trail, including drainage culverts and associated work. The project included site preparation, brushing, excavation, crushed base course, landscaping, signage, and water crossings. The multi-purpose trail, constructed on a former railroad bed, runs west from the City of Brillion to Forest Junction, where it connects with the Fox River Trail. Ayres also designed approximately 5 miles of the Fox River Trail at the connection point.

Bridge rehabilitationIn 2008, one of the water crossings along the trail near Brillion washed out and was structurally damaged. The Calumet County Parks Department received funding from the Federal Emergency Management Agency (FEMA) to repair the bridge. The County retained Ayres for bridge inspection, rehabilitation design, Wisconsin Department of Natural Resources (WDNR) permitting, and bidding services.

CTH LP to Fire Lane 12 RoadAyres was also involved in the County’s plans to extend the Friendship State Trail system to include a trail from Waverly Beach on Oneida Street in the City of Menasha to High Cliff State Park. The County hired Ayres to design a shared-use trail from CTH LP to Fire Lane 12 Road along Old Highway Road and adjacent to STH 114. The trail project was approximately 2.2 miles long.

The project was in part federally funded by the High Priority Project program and follows procedures included in the Sponsor’s Guide to Non-Traditional Transportation Project Implementation manual. Services included environmental, wetland delineation, railroad, and utility coordination; topographic survey, right-of-way plat, permitting; plans, specifications, and estimates; bidding assistance; and construction administration/observation.

The project included paving existing base aggregate shoulders along Old Highway Road from CTH “LP” to STH 114 and constructing a new 10-foot-wide asphalt trail with 2-foot vegetated shoulders adjacent to the south side of STH 114 from Old Highway Road to Fire Lane 12 Road. The project also included pavement marking, signing, and lawn restoration.

• Trace Hubbard, Project Manager
• Craig Schuh, Manager - Engineering Services
• Dan Sydow, Manager - Structural Engineering
• Jacob Jensen, Supervisor - Land Survey
• Jason Ingram, Executive Vice President
• Troy Robillard, Manager - Transportation Services - Green Bay

• Bicycle & Pedestrian Bridges
• Environmental Permitting
• Municipal Construction Observation
• Right-of-Way Plats
• Signing & Pavement Marking
• Topographic & Site Survey
• Wetland Delineation, Design & Permitting