The Recreational Trails Program provides annual funding to Vermont communities for the development and restoration of public recreational trails.
Donor Name: Vermont Department of Forests, Parks and Recreation
State: Vermont
County: All Counties
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: 11/21/2025
Size of the Grant: $100,000 to $500,000
Grant Duration: 2 Years
Details:
Recreational Trails Program (RTP) grants are federally funded on an annual basis through the United States Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and are administered at the State level in Vermont through the Department of Forests, Parks, and Recreation (FPR). FPR makes RTP funds available to Vermont communities for the development and maintenance of public recreational trails, for both motorized and non-motorized recreation.
RTP grants to local communities and non-profit organizations throughout Vermont are awarded for recreational trail projects for their contribution to livability and connection of people to place. Project proposals are solicited through a competitive application process.
All projects funded are to help achieve the program’s goals to:
- Strengthen the quality, extent, and resilience of existing outdoor recreation resources.
- Create and support trails that welcome all who live and visit Vermont and allow them to heal, learn, grow, and live their lives fully.
- Promote stewardship of outdoor recreation resources and enhance both trail user experiences and environmental quality.
- Encourage all trail enthusiasts to work together to provide a wide variety of recreational trail opportunities that fulfill community needs.
Tracks
There will be three potential tracks:
- Standard RTP – To fund new projects that will build and/or maintain trails and trail-related amenities and/or provide trail-related safety/user education.
- Planning (new!) – Provides an opportunity for applicants early in their design phase to request funding for community engagement, design, engineering and other planning/permitting costs.
- Cost Increases (new!) – An opportunity for current FPR grantees with trails projects to request additional funding due to unforeseen circumstances (ex: unforeseen surveying work, permit-based scope changes, costs rising faster than normal inflation).
Funding Information
- Standard RTP: $50,000.
- Education projects: $25,000.
- Planning: $20,000
- Cost Increases: $20,000 in new funding, to be added as an amendment to an existing FPR grant.
Project Period
Grant implementation period: July 13, 2026 – December 31, 2027.
Eligible Projects
Eligible projects include:
- Maintenance/restoration of existing trails
- Construction of new trails, with certain limitations for projects on federal lands
- Development and rehabilitation of trailside and trailhead amenities, facilities, and parking areas (i.e., signage, kiosks, composting toilets, recycling receptacles, or trail structures along the trail, directly associated with the trail)
- Land Acquisitions: Acquisition of trail easements or fee simple title to property with trails or recreational trail corridors
- Educational projects
Eligibility Criteria
Eligible to apply for RTP grants:
- Municipalities (cities, towns, counties, etc.)
- Non-profit organizations
- State or Federal government agencies, other governmental entities (district or local authorities), or tribal governments
For more information, visit FPR.
