On a hot and mostly sunny Friday afternoon, the developers of Atlanta's BeltLine and a cadre of city officials cut the ribbon on a stretch of trail that connects nearly two-thirds of the entire project.
By opening the connection between segments 2 and 3 of the Southside Trail, there is now something called "The U" connecting 16.7 continuous miles from the Northwest Trail through the Westside, Southside, Eastside, and Northeast corridors.
The 1.9-mile addition connects Pittsburgh Yards to Boulevard in southeast Atlanta, linking 36 neighborhoods and several Atlanta public schools. The project also includes the Westside BeltLine Connector Trail linking the BeltLine to Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
The ribbon cutting was completed with funding from federal, state, local, and philanthropic sources that helped accelerate construction ahead of the 2026 FIFA World Cup. The ceremony came shortly before Atlanta's first World Cup match.
The full BeltLine vision is a 22-mile mainline trail loop around the city, with the remaining segments still under development.
