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MEMPHIS, TENN. – Tens of thousands of tires illegally dumped in Memphis are now paving a nearly three-mile walking and biking trail inside T.O. Fuller State Park.

Tennessee State Parks said ‘Tires to Trails’ is one of the world’s longest paths made of recycled tires.

Memphis City Beautiful brought together 850 volunteers who spent nearly two years collecting nearly 30,000 tires discarded in and around Fuller State Park.

“It was good to see those tires get put to a different use as opposed to just being illegally dumped,” said David Burgess, Program Coordinator for Memphis City Beautiful.

The tires were transported to Patriot Tire Recycling in Bristol, where they were recycled into rubber crumbs.

Once back in Memphis, the crumbs were mixed with stone and a binding agent to create a unique surface.

“It’s a great surfacing. It’s better on people’s joints,” said Burgess. “It was two-fold. They were able to repurpose the tires dumped in and around the park and patch up that trail.”

T.O. Fuller State Park was the first park open for African Americans east of the Mississippi River. The 1,138-acre park is located within the southern city limits of Memphis.

‘Tires to Trails’ is located off Pavillion Drive and replaces worn cart paths from an old golf course.

“If people would legally recycle their tires, we wouldn’t have an issue, but it’s good to be able to collect them and repurpose them,” said Burgess.

‘Tires to Trails’ is now open to the public. For a map of Fuller State Park, click right here.

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