From Railway to Trailway: Waco Celebrates MKT Trail Grand Opening

Last updated on March 06, 2025 at 12:00 PM

City and construction officials gathered behind a red ribbon at the MKT trailhead

On Thursday, March 6, the community came together for a ribbon-cutting ceremony to celebrate the grand opening of the MKT Trail.

This rail-to-trail project transformed 1.2 miles of the historic Missouri Kansas Texas railway into a lighted, 12-foot-wide concrete pedestrian pathway. The trail stretches from Sherman Street to Gholson Road in East Waco, providing a new non-motorized pathway between neighborhoods and the existing Brazos River trail system.

Now with the warmer weather, we welcome you to explore the MKT Trail for a leisurely stroll, bike ride, or a scenic run.

About the MKT Trail

Trailhead sign made with salvaged railway parts

Aerial view of the MKT Trail surrounded by a neighborhood and trees

While most of the rails along the route were removed years ago, some of the remaining segments were unearthed and used for decorative features at trailheads. A central trailhead at Faulkner Lane and Garrison Street has a trail sign that provides some history of the railway.

The trail system also offers:

  • Brick-inlayed distance markers installed each half-mile
  • New trees and landscaping
  • Benches
  • Trash cans
  • Traffic humps where the trail crosses streets for increased safety

The $4.3 million lighted trailway project was partially funded by $4.28 million in federal grant funding, most of which coming from the federal Transportation Alternatives Set-Aside Program grant, which supports converting decommissioned rail lines into trails. Future plans include extending the MKT Trail on both ends.

Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad Company

Black and white photo of a train

Passenger train on the MKT Railway in 1915. Photo courtesy of the Baylor University Texas Collection.

The Missouri-Kansas-Texas Railroad Company was established in 1865 shortly after the Civil War connecting Missouri, Kansas, Texas, and Oklahoma. The railroad company's first train, the Katy, was the first railroad to enter Texas from the north in 1872, and it became known as the "Gateway to Texas." The MKT Railroad Company later expanded its operations in Texas, and the Katy arrived to Waco in 1888. Waco saw great economic growth in the late-19th century thanks in part to the railroad.

Despite the Great Depression, the railroad company continued to expand with more than 1,600 miles of operated track in Texas and additional luxury passenger trains. However, in the mid-20th century, business declined with the boom of air travel and freeway systems.

By the end of the 20th century, passenger train rides were discontinued, the Union Pacific Railroad absorbed the MKT system, and many railways were decommissioned. A portion of the former MKT rail network remains in service under the Union Pacific operation.

Today, the new MKT Trail joins many of the trail systems across Missouri, Kansas, Oklahoma, and Texas that were converted from the decommissioned railways.

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