Connecticut Trail System data table

Frequently-asked questions:

• What does this data set describe?
  1. How should this data set be cited?
  2. What geographic area does the data set cover?
  3. What does it look like?
  4. Does the data set describe conditions during a particular time period?
  5. What is the general form of this data set?
  6. How does the data set represent geographic features?
  7. How does the data set describe geographic features?
• Who produced the data set?
  1. Who are the originators of the data set?
  2. Who also contributed to the data set?
  3. To whom should users address questions about the data?
• Why was the data set created?
• How was the data set created?
  1. Where did the data come from?
  2. What changes have been made?
• How reliable are the data; what problems remain in the data set?
  1. How well have the observations been checked?
  2. How accurate are the geographic locations?
  3. How accurate are the heights or depths?
  4. Where are the gaps in the data? What is missing?
  5. How consistent are the relationships among the data, including topology?
• How can someone get a copy of the data set?
  1. Are there legal restrictions on access or use of the data?
  2. Who distributes the data?
  3. What's the catalog number I need to order this data set?
  4. What legal disclaimers am I supposed to read?
  5. How can I download or order the data?
  6. Is there some other way to get the data?
  7. What hardware or software do I need in order to use the data set?
• Who wrote the metadata?

Trail System includes summary information about each system of trails in the Connecticut Statewide Trails Database. A trail system is defined as a set of trails maintained by an agency or organization for a particular geographic area. For example, trail systems exist for a state park, state forest, land-trust park, or system of Blue-Blazed Hiking Trails. Trail systems may connect and overlap each other in certain areas. There is one record per trail system, with the Trail System Id attribute as the primary key.

Includes summary information such as whether hiking, walking, running, inline skating, bicycling, mountain biking, motorbiking, all terraine vehicle use, snowmobiling, cross-country skiing, and horseback riding activities are permitted anywhere within a trail system.

Statewide Trails Database model version number 1.0. Refer to the Getting_Started.htm document for how to prepare and load existing trail data into the Statewide Trails Database format. A Statewide Trails extension (statewidetrails.avx) is also available for ArcView 3x software for creating identical field attributes in Shapefile format. The extension is useful in preparing data initially collected and maintained in Shapefile format for loading into GeoDatabase Feature Class format.

1. How should this data set be cited?
   
   
   State of Connecticut, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (data compiler, editor and publisher), 20060601, Connecticut Trail System data table: State of Connecticut, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, Hartford, Connecticut, USA.
   
   
   Online links:

   • http://www.ct.gov/deep

   
   
   Other citation details:

   Refer to the Trail System data table in the Statewide Trails Database for complete listing of all agencies and organizations collecting and providing information for the Statewide Trails Database. Data compiled at various scales.

   
   
2. What geographic area does the data set cover?
   
   
   Bounding coordinates:

   West: -73.742172

   East: -71.781365

   North: 42.052612

   South: 40.949970
   
   
3. What does it look like?
   
   
   http://www.cteco.uconn.edu/metadata/dep/browsegraphic/trailsdetailview.gif (GIF)

   Detail view of a Trail System with Trail, Trail Access, Point of Interest and Roadway features.
   
   
4. Does the data set describe conditions during a particular time period?
   
   
   Calendar date: 20060601
   Currentness reference:

   publication date

   
   
5. What is the general form of this data set?
   
   
   Geospatial data presentation form: tabular digital data
   
   
6. How does the data set represent geographic features?
   
   
   1. How are geographic features stored in the data set?
      
      
      Indirect spatial reference:

      State Park, State Forest, municipal park, land trust, or trail system name
      
      
   2. What coordinate system is used to represent geographic features?
      
      
7. How does the data set describe geographic features?
   
   
   Connecticut Trail System data table

   Trail System includes summary information about each system of trails. There is one record per trail system, with the Trail System Id attribute as the primary key. A trail system is defined as a set of trails maintained by an agency or organization for a particular area. For example, trail systems exist for a state park, state forest, land-trust park, or system of Blue-Blazed Hiking Trails. They may connect and overlap each other in certain areas. Relate this data table to the Trail, Trail Access Point, Trail Point of Interest and Roadway feature classes. (Source: State of Connecticut, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection)

   
   

   OBJECTID

   Internal feature number. (Source: ESRI)
                     

   
   

   Sequential unique whole numbers that are automatically generated.

   
   

   TRAILSYSID

   Trail System Id - Uniquely identifies a logical system of trails and is a common identifier found in all tables. All Trail line, Trail Access point, Trail Interest point, and Roadway line features for a given Trail System are assigned the same Trail System Id. An agency or organization wishing to provide trail data for inclusion in the Connecticut Statewide Trails Database must use Trail System Ids assigned by the State of Connecticut, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection so that they do conflict with Trail System Ids used by other trail data providers. Please contact the State of Connecticut, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection at 860-424-3540 to obtain a block of Trail Systems Ids for your use. Trail System Ids are allocated to data providers in blocks of 50 (Source: State of Connecticut, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection)
                     

   
   

   Value	Definition
   1 - 100	Block of 100 Trail System Ids reserved for trail systems submitted by CT DEP
   101 - 150	First block of 50 Trail System Ids.
   151 - 200	Second block of 50 Trail System Ids.
   201 - 250	Third block of 50 Trail System Ids.
   251 - 300	Fourth block of 50 Trail System Ids.
   etc.	Continued allocation of Trail System Ids in blocks of 50, as required.

   
   

   TRAILSYSN

   Trail System Name - Name of the trail system such as Pachaug State Forest - Chapman Area, Hammonasset State Park Trails, or the Nipmuck Trail. There can only be one Trail System Name for each Trail System Id. (Source: State of Connecticut, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection)
                     

   
   

   Text value. Example: Pachaug State Forest - Chapman Area

   
   

   TRAILSYSW

   Trail System Website - Internet address for the a Web page providing detailed information about the particular trail system such as address location, driving directions, activity descriptions, and possibly photographs. If a trail system-specific Web page does not exist, specify the Web page that lists or provides more general information about all of the Managing Agency's trail systems or parks, if available. Otherwise, leave blank. URL must begin with "http://". (Source: State of Connecticut, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection)
                     

   
   

   Example: http://www.dep.state.ct.us/stateparks/forests/pachaug_chapman.htm

   
   

   TOWNS

   Towns Located - An alphabetic, comma separated list of all of the Connecticut Towns the trail system is located in. Refer to the Towns data table for a list of town names. Do not abbreviate town names (e.g. W. Hartford). Do not use village names (e.g. Kensington). (Source: State of Connecticut, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection)
                     

   
   

   Example: Griswold, Serling, Voluntown

   
   

   MNGAGNCY

   Managing Agency - Name of agency or organization that manages and maintains the trails. (Source: State of Connecticut, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection)
                     

   
   

   Example: Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection

   
   

   MNGAGNCYW

   Managing Agency Website - The Managing Agency's primary Internet address. URL must begin with "http://". (Source: State of Connecticut, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection)
                     

   
   

   Example: http://www.ct.gov/dep

   
   

   MNGAGNCYT

   Managing Agency Type - The Managing Agency's ownership type. (Source: State of Connecticut, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection)
                     

   
   

   Value	Definition
   Federal	Federally owned
   Municipal	Municipally owned
   Private	Privately owned
   Private non-profit	Private non-profit owned
   State	State owned. This is the default value.

   
   

   DATAPROVD

   Data Provider - Name of agency or organization responsible for providing (submitting) trail data to the Statewide Trails Database. May not necessarily be the same agency responsible for collecting the trail data or managing the trail system. (Source: State of Connecticut, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection)
                     

   
   

   Example: Connecticut Department of Environmental Protection

   
   

   DATAPROVDW

   Data Provider Website - The Data Provider's primary Internet address. URL must begin with "http://". (Source: State of Connecticut, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection)
                     

   
   

   Example: http://www.ct.gov/dep

   
   

   DATACOLL

   Data Collector - Name of agency or organization primarily responsible for collecting (digitizing, GPSing, and entering) the trail data submitted by Data Provider to the Statewide Trails database. Depending on the situation, the data collector, data provider, and managing agency may be the same agency or different agencies having different roles and areas of responsibility relative to managing trails and information about trails. For example, a land trust or group of volunteers might have compiled and collected the original data that was given to a regional planning agency to prepare and reformat for inclusion in the Statewide Trails Database. In this example, the land trust is both data collector and managing agency, and the regional planning agency is the data provider. In another example, a single agency such as the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection is generally the data collector, data provider, and managing agency for State Park trails. Use a comma to separate multiple data collectors. (Source: State of Connecticut, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection)
                     

   
   

   Example: Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection

   
   

   DATACOLLW

   Data Collector Website - The Data Collector's primary Internet address. URL must begin with "http://". (Source: State of Connecticut, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection)
                     

   
   

   Example: http://www.ct.gov/dep

   
   

   PLNUSEONLY

   For Planning Use Only - Indicates whether the trail system and related trails, trail access points, trail points of interest, and roadway information should only to be used for planning purposes and not shown on hiking maps, for example. Use this field to include very small or local trail systems in the database that, for reasons of significance or capacity, should not be shown on hiking maps, yet important to take into consideration for open space land acquisition, regional trail, or other land use planning and decision making purposes. Always define the appropriate set of trail, trail access point, trail point of interest, and roadway features to include on a hiking map using the following expression: PlnUseOnly = "False". (Source: State of Connecticut, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection)
                     

   
   

   Value	Definition
   True	Trail System Information may only be used for planning purposes. These trail systems should not be shown on trail hiking maps.
   False	Trail System Information may be used for any purpose - trail mapping, open space planning, land use analysis, etc. This is the default value.
   Unknown	True - False value is unknown

   
   

   PUBACCESS

   Public Access Permitted - Indicates whether the entire trail system is open to the general public. This is a True-False field. Typically, most trail systems are always open. However, a trail system might be temporarily closed for maintenance or safety reasons. Note that a similar field exists for Trail line features to indicate whether particular sections of trails are open or closed to the public. Additionally, Trail Access point features include a field named Open When to indicate whether particular points of access are open year-round or seasonally. (Source: State of Connecticut, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection)
                     

   
   

   Value	Definition
   True	Trail system currently open to the public. This is the default value.
   False	Trail system closed.
   Unknown	True - False value is unknown

   
   

   HIKE

   Hiking Appropriate - Indicates whether trail system includes trails appropriate for hiking. (Source: State of Connecticut, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection)
                     

   
   

   Value	Definition
   True	Hiking is permitted. This is the default value.
   False	Hiking not permitted.
   Unknown	True - False value is unknown

   
   

   WALK

   Walking Appropriate - Indicates whether trail system includes trails appropriate for walking. Walking activity implies a short (possibly loop) trail or path with little or no grade that can be traveled with minimal effort. (Source: State of Connecticut, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection)
                     

   
   

   Value	Definition
   True	Trail condition and grade consistent with leisurely walking activity.
   False	Trail condition and grade inconsistent with leisurely walking activity. This is the default value.
   Unknown	True - False value is unknown

   
   

   RUN

   Running Appropriate - Indicates whether trail system includes trails appropriate for running and jogging. (Source: State of Connecticut, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection)
                     

   
   

   Value	Definition
   True	Running, jogging permitted.
   False	Running, jogging not permitted. This is the default value.
   Unknown	True - False value is unknown

   
   

   INLINSKATE

   Inline Skating Permitted - Indicates whether inline skating is permitted anywhere in the trail system. (Source: State of Connecticut, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection)
                     

   
   

   Value	Definition
   True	Inline skating (rollerblading) permitted.
   False	Inline skating not permitted. This is the default value.
   Unknown	True - False value is unknown

   
   

   BIKE

   Bicycling Permitted - Indicates whether bicycling is permitted anywhere in the trail system. Bicycling suggests use of a street bike (usually with narrow tires) on a hard surface. (Source: State of Connecticut, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection)
                     

   
   

   Value	Definition
   True	Bicycling permitted.
   False	Bicycling not permitted. This is the default value.
   Unknown	True - False value is unknown

   
   

   MTNBIKE

   Mountain Biking Permitted - Indicates whether mountain biking is permitted anywhere in the trail system. (Source: State of Connecticut, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection)
                     

   
   

   Value	Definition
   True	Moutain biking permitted.
   False	Moutain biking not permitted. This is the default value.
   Unknown	True - False value is unknown

   
   

   MOTORBIKE

   Motorbiking Permitted - Indicates whether motorcycling is permitted anywhere in the trail system. (Source: State of Connecticut, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection)
                     

   
   

   Value	Definition
   True	Motorcycling permitted.
   False	Motorcycling not permitted. This is the default value.
   Unknown	True - False value is unknown

   
   

   ALLTERVEH

   All Terrain Vehicle Permitted - Indicates whether All Terrain Vehicles are permitted anywhere in the trail system. (Source: State of Connecticut, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection)
                     

   
   

   Value	Definition
   True	All Terrain Vehicles permitted.
   False	All Terrain Vehicles not permitted. This is the default value.
   Unknown	True - False value is unknown

   
   

   SNOWMOBILE

   Snowmobiling Permitted - Indicates whether snowmobiling is permitted anywhere in the trail system. (Source: State of Connecticut, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection)
                     

   
   

   Value	Definition
   True	Snowmobiling permitted.
   False	Snowmobiling not permitted. This is the default value.
   Unknown	True - False value is unknown

   
   

   CROSSCSKI

   Cross Country Skiing Permitted - Indicates whether cross-country skiing is a permitted anywhere in the trail system. (Source: State of Connecticut, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection)
                     

   
   

   Value	Definition
   True	Cross-country skiing permitted
   False	Cross-country skiing not permitted. This is the default value.
   Unknown	True - False value is unknown

   
   

   EQUESTRIAN

   Equestrian Permitted - Indicates whether horseback riding is a permitted anywhere in the trail system. (Source: State of Connecticut, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection)
                     

   
   

   Value	Definition
   True	Horseback riding permitted.
   False	Horseback riding not permitted. This is the default value.
   Unknown	True - False value is unknown

   
   

   ADAACCESS

   Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Accessible - Indicates whether there are handicapped accessible trails, boardwalks, sidewalks, etc. anywhere in the trail system. (Source: State of Connecticut, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection)
                     

   
   

   Value	Definition
   True	ADA accessible
   False	Not ADA accessible. This is the default value.
   Unknown	True - False value is unknown

   
   

   DOGLEASH

   Leashed Dogs Permitted - Indicates whether leashed dogs are permitted anywhere in the trail system. (Source: State of Connecticut, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection)
                     

   
   

   Value	Definition
   True	Leashed dogs permitted.
   False	Leashed dogs not permitted. This is the default value.
   Unknown	True - False value is unknown

   
   

   DOGUNLEASH

   Unleashed Dogs Permitted - Indicates whether unleashed dogs are permitted anywhere in the trail system. (Source: State of Connecticut, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection)
                     

   
   

   Value	Definition
   True	Unleashed dogs permitted.
   False	Unleashed dogs not permitted. This is the default value.
   Unknown	True - False value is unknown

   
   

   NATURTRAIL

   Nature Trail - Indicates whether the trail system includes a self-guided, interpretive, or nature trail. (Source: State of Connecticut, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection)
                     

   
   

   Value	Definition
   True	Includes self-guided, interpretive, nature trail.
   False	Does hot include self-guided, interpretive, nature trail. This is the default value.
   Unknown	True - False value is unknown

   
   

   GREENWAY

   Dedicated Greenway - Indicates whether trail system is part of or represents a Designated Greenway. (Source: State of Connecticut, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection)
                     

   
   

   Value	Definition
   True	Trail system includes a Designated Greenway.
   False	Trail system is not a Designated Greenway. This is the default value.
   Unknown	True - False value is unknown

   
   
   Entity and attribute overview:

   Table Relationships:
   
   1. Trail line features are joined to the Trail_System table via the TrailSysId field. 
   2. Trail_Access point features are joined to the Trail_System table via the TrailSysId field. 
   3. Trail_Interest point features are joined to the Trail_System table via the TrailSysId field. 
   4. Roadway line features are joined to the Trail_System table via the TrailSysId field.
   
   Attributes:
   
   1. Trail System Id - Uniquely identifies a logical system of trails and is a common identifier found in all tables. All Trail line, Trail Access point, Trail Interest point, and Roadway line features for a given Trail System are assigned the same Trail System Id. An agency or organization wishing to provide trail data for inclusion in the Connecticut Statewide Trails Database must use Trail System Ids assigned by the State of Connecticut, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection so that they do conflict with Trail System Ids used by other trail data providers. Please contact the Connecticut Department of Energy and Environmental Protection at 860-424-3540 to obtain a block of Trail Systems Ids for your use. Trail System Ids are allocated to data providers in blocks of 50. 
   
   2. Field Types - Most fields are text fields except for Trail System Id (TrailSysId) and the Town Number (TownNo) field in the Trail Access Point feature class.
   
   3. Text Fields - Most fields without domains are free-form text fields. Depending on the field, certain rules and conventions need to be applied when entering data in these fields. For example, the Trail Marker (TrailMark) field in the Trail line feature class is to be left blank if a trail is not marked. Do not populate the field with the words "unmarked" or "unblazed", for example. Leave all free-form text fields blank if information is not applicable.
   
   4. Field Domain Range - Attribute domains represent a fixed list of values to choose from for a particular field. Domain values are case sensitive text field values that must be entered exactly as specified in the metadata enumerated domains. For example the Bike attribute uses a true-false domain that stores text information as either "True" or "False", not "TRUE" or "FALSE"; "true" or "false"; "yes" or "no", or 0 or -1, etc. Any value other than "True" or "False" is invalid, with the exception of the NULL option, which is a field value that is only available to data in GeoDatabase and not Shapefile format. Adhering to domain values is important to keep in mind when using the field Calculate option in ArcView 3x or ArcGIS 9x to assign domain attribute values to selected features at once. It is easy to inadvertently calculate values outside the range of a field's domain.
   
   5. Default Values - The default domain values for each field is indicated in the metadata for the field such as "True" for the Hiking or "Unpaved" for the Trail Surface (TrailSurf) field in the Trail line feature class. These are the default values when adding new table records or digitizing new features.
   
   6. Null Field Values - For fields with enumerated domains in GeoDatabase format, NULL is a valid domain value that can be used to signify information is unknown. NULL implies that the information is Unknown. It does not imply that the information is not applicable. 
   
   7. Null Field Values (Shapefile format) - For fields with enumerated domains in Shapefile format, NULL is not a valid value so do not enter NULL or "NULL" even though NULL is allowed in GeoDatabase format. For data in Shapefile, leave the field blank if the value is unknown.

1. Who are the originators of the data set? (may include formal authors, digital compilers, and editors)
   
   
   • State of Connecticut, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection (data compiler, editor and publisher)
   
   
2. Who also contributed to the data set?
   
   
3. To whom should users address questions about the data?
   
   
   State of Connecticut, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection

   79 Elm Street

   Hartford, Connecticut 06106-5127

   USA

   
   

   860-424-3540 (voice)

   860-424-4058 (FAX)

   dep.gisdata@ct.gov

   Hours of Service: Monday to Friday, 08:30 to 16:30 Eastern Standard Time

To facilitate the management and sharing of information for trail mapping, management, planning, and information dissemination purposes.

1. Where did the data come from?
   
   
2. What changes have been made?
   
   

1. How well have the observations been checked?
   
   

   All attributes have valid values. Values are within defined domains. Accuracy tests performed by data collector and data provider.

   
   
2. How accurate are the geographic locations?
   
   
3. How accurate are the heights or depths?
   
   
4. Where are the gaps in the data? What is missing?
   
   

   As complete as data is collected by data collectors and supplied by data providers to the Statewide Trails Database. Because it is designed to include more and more information over time, the Statewide Trails Database does not represent a complete inventory of all greenways, trails, and bike routes. Rather, it is intended to be a Statewide repository of currently available information.

   
   
5. How consistent are the relationships among the observations, including topology?
   
   

No restrictions or legal prerequisites for using the data. Trail line feature information was prepared by collecting trail positions in the field using GPS equipment, digitizing trail maps, compiling information onto a planimetric correct base and digitizing, or by copying previously digitized road and trail centerline features. Horizontal accuracy varies depending on the methodology used to map and digitize each trail system. Consequently, as a whole, these data are generally not intended for maps printed at scales greater or more detailed than 1:24,000 scale (1 inch = 2,000 feet). Refer to the Horizontal Accuracy Notes attribute in the Trail line feature and Roadway line feature class for more specific horizontal accuracy assessments when mapping individual trail systems at larger (more accurate) scales. Trail Access point and Trail Interest point feature information was prepared using similar methods, with horizontal accuracy varying accordingly. Although this data set has been used by the State of Connecticut, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection, no warranty, expressed or implied, is made by the State of Connecticut, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection as to the accuracy of the data and or related materials. The act of distribution shall not constitute any such warranty, and no responsibility is assumed by the State of Connecticut, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection in the use of these data or related materials. The user assumes the entire risk related to the use of these data. Once the data is distributed to the user, modifications made to the data by the user should be noted in the metadata. The State of Connecticut, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection and all other Originators (referenced in the Citation section of this metadata), should be acknowledged as the data source in products derived from the trail data. For example, include the following data source description on a map: Trails - From the Connecticut Statewide Trails layer, compiled and published by CT DEEP and other trail data collecting agencies and organizations. Source map scale varies.

Who distributes the data set?


State of Connecticut, Department of Energy and Environmental Protection
79 Elm Street
Hartford, Connecticut 06106-5127
USA


860-424-3540 (voice)
860-424-4058 (FAX)
dep.gisdata@ct.gov
Hours of Service: Monday to Friday, 08:30 to 16:30 Eastern Standard Time


What's the catalog number I need to order this data set?


Connecticut Statewide Trails Database


What legal disclaimers am I supposed to read?


How can I download or order the data?


• Availability in digital form:




Data format:	in format Data Table (version ArcGIS)
Network links:	http://www.ct.gov/deep



• Cost to order the data: An online copy of the data may be accessed without charge.



Is there some other way to get the data?


The data distributor does not provide custom GIS analysis or mapping services. Data is available in a standard format and may be converted to other formats, projections, coordinate systems, or selected for specific geographic regions by the party receiving the data.


What hardware or software do I need in order to use the data set?


Geographic information sytem (GIS), computer-aided drawing or other mapping software is necessary to display, view and access the information.

79 Elm Street