Major Taylor Trail

Named after the legendary African American cyclist and civil rights advocate Marshall W. “Major” Taylor, the Major Taylor Trail stretches over 8 miles across the South Side of Chicago. It’s a great place for residents to get outside and enjoy nature, especially for a community that has unjustly suffered decades of green space disinvestment.

But there’s more work to do to ensure this trail is kept as a quality community asset. Today, many consider the trail complete, but it needs improvement since its official opening in 2007.

At Trust for Public Land, we believe parks and trails are essential to our lives, and our investments in them reflect and communicate our core values and goals as communities. That’s why we’re spearheading the movement to bring together community advocates and organizations, local government entities, and residents into one voice that brings these improvements to fruition.

We view green spaces as the sum of all their parts—from the facilities and amenities, to the processes and decisions used to design and maintain them, to the social bonds and cues that make us feel safe and welcome. Our work at Major Taylor Trail is no exception and will help connect the community to the benefits of a quality trail.