SUN TRAIL FAQ PAGE
This information has been prepared for residents who may have questions about the proposed River-to-Sea Loop or Sun Trail project.
St. Johns County's page - SUN Trail in St. Johns County - St. Johns County
St. Johns Planning Study - SJR2C Loop Final Report
1. What is the Loop/Sun Trail?
It is part of a State of Florida project meant to provide separation and thus safety from vehicular traffic for non-motorized vehicle means of transportation, such as bicycling and walking. The Trail will be 12 feet in width where possible and will begin at the St. Johns River in Palatka, go east across St. Johns County, through St. Augustine and into St. Augustine Beach, then south into Flagler and Volusia counties. It will be a segment of Florida’s Regional Trail system.
2. What is the project’s funding source?
A state agency, the Florida Department of Transportation.
3. Who is the local coordinator for the project?
St. Johns County Public Works Department.
4. Will there be any cost to the City’s taxpayers?
No. Established in 2015, the Florida Shared-Use, Non-Motorized Sun Trail program receives an annual allocation from new vehicle license tag revenue. Money from this allocation will pay the Trail’s planning and construction costs.
5. Where will the Trail be located in St. Augustine Beach?
It will enter the City along Santander Street, which is bordered on the west by the Ocean Breeze beachwear store, a small residential subdivision and a storage facility for the Sheriff’s Department and on the east by Anastasia State Park. It will connect to the eight-foot wide sidewalk/bike path along the north side of Pope Road, then go east to A1A Beach Boulevard where the Sun Trail will become a 12-foot wide sidewalk/bike path along the Boulevard’s east side to south of the Publix shopping plaza at the Boulevard’s junction with State Road A1A.
6. How much will the project cost?
At this time, $730,000 is the cost for the design phase. The cost for the construction phase won’t be known until the County awards the bid.
7. Are Santander Street, Pope Road and A1A Beach Boulevard owned by the City?
No, they are all owned by St. Johns County.
8. Who will pay the costs to maintain the Trail?
As A1A Beach Boulevard is owned by St. Johns County, the County will be responsible for maintenance.
9. How will the Trail change A1A Beach Boulevard?
The existing five-foot concrete sidewalk along the Boulevard’s east side will be removed. The existing curb and gutter will be moved about eight feet west. For vehicles, the existing paved shoulders on each side of the Boulevard will be replaced with two 11-foot travel lanes and an 11-foot center turning lane. The current three feet of grass between the curb and the sidewalk will be reduced to two feet.
10. Will the construction of the Trail cause trees along Pope Road to be removed?
No.
11. Will it cause the palm trees along A1A Beach Boulevard to be removed?
Only those trees that create unsafe conditions because they block the view of drivers, bicyclists and pedestrians will be removed.
12. Will the Sun Trail require the acquisition of private property?
No.
13. Will the Trail remove any designated public or private parking areas?
No.
14. Won’t the Trail create difficulties for drivers who cross it as they enter or exit side streets and businesses on the Boulevard’s east side?
There are approximately 54 access points (streets, alleys and driveways) on the east side of the Boulevard and 51 on the west side.
Whether the 12-foot wide Trail will by itself be the cause for accidents cannot be accurately predicted. Even without the Trail, drivers along a busy urban street like A1A Beach Boulevard with its many side streets and driveways and use by emergency responders must be vigilant as must pedestrians and bicyclists. There will be signs and pavement markings to guide drivers, bicyclists and pedestrians and thus help reduce the risk of accidents.
15. Aren’t there existing bike paths along the side of A1A Beach Boulevard and can’t they be widened?
Regulation width of paved bike paths that are adjacent to roads is five feet. The Boulevard’s current paved shoulders aren’t five feet wide. To designate them officially as bike paths could create liability because injured bicyclists could claim the County designated undersized shoulders as bike paths, thereby giving the public the illusion of safety.
16. Couldn’t the Boulevard’s center turning lane be removed so that the paved shoulders on either side could be made the legal width for a bike path?
No. The center turning lane is needed for emergency vehicles to get around traffic when responding to calls. Also, removal of the center turning lane could increase the number of rear end vehicle accidents as drivers in the travel lane would have to stop in order to make a turn onto a side street or a business on the opposite side of the Boulevard.
17. Can’t the Trail be put along Mickler Boulevard?
While Mickler Boulevard is wide enough, the problem would be the next section of the Trail, which would be along A Street from Mickler to the Boulevard. This section is too narrow for a 12-foot sidewalk/bike path. Even now, the existing five-foot sidewalk along this section of A Street provides insufficient space for safe use by both pedestrians and bicyclists. Also, the adjacent duplexes are close to the sidewalk, which leaves limited space for residents to park their vehicles.
18. If the Trail were put along Mickler Boulevard, could D Street instead of A Street be used to connect it to A1A Beach Boulevard?
5th Avenue could be used for the Trail between Mickler Boulevard and D Street. While D Street has a 60-foot right-of-way, the construction of a 10- to 12-foot wide Trail would require the removal of some trees. Also, it is likely that D Street residents would oppose the project because of the change to their normally peaceful neighborhood.
19. Couldn’t the Trail be located on State Road A1A?
Possibly, if there’s sufficient right-of-way. However, the location could be dangerous, especially for children on bicycles. For safety reasons, it is more appropriate that the Trail be built adjacent to the three-lane Boulevard with its 30 mile-per-hour speed limit instead of the four-lane SR-A1A with its 45 mile-per-hour limit. Also, the Trail on the Boulevard’s east side will provide access for bicyclists and pedestrians to the beach and public facilities (Pier Park, restrooms, Ocean Hammock Park, public parking areas) as well as many restaurants and other businesses. The only beach access from State Road A1A in the City is Ocean Trace Road south of the shopping center. Also, residential subdivisions, not businesses, line most of the section of State Road A1A that is in the City.
20. Couldn’t the Trail be put along the west side of A1A Beach Boulevard?
While it could, the Trail’s west side location would mean that in order to get to the beach and public facilities on the east side, bicyclists and pedestrians would have to cross the Boulevard, which would definitely not be as safe as having the Trail on the east side.
21. Who can I contact for more information?
You can email the County’s Public Works Director, Greg Caldwell, at gcaldwell [at] sjcfl.us (gcaldwell[at]sjcfl[dot]us).
22. What is the next step?
The County Commission is planning to discuss the Sun Trail project at its regular meeting on Tuesday, May 19, 2026. The meeting will begin at 9 a.m. To know where on the agenda the Trail will be discussed, interested citizens can view the agenda on the County’s website five days before the meeting.