The May 3 ride will run from Riverfront Park to Calapooia Brewing Co.

One of these years, bike riders might be able to travel between Albany and Corvallis on a dedicated path.

To hasten that day - still years off, by most accounts - advocates for the project are organizing a bike ride from Corvallis to Albany on May 3.

About 50 riders took part in a similar ride last September, and organizer Nick Hawley of Albany hopes for more this time.

"My impetus for organizing this comes from wanting to help people to get out of their gas-powered vehicles and trying to get our city council to take (seriously) the idea of alternatives to fossil fuels," Hawley said in an e-mail.

The ride will cover about 10 miles. It will start at noon May 3 at the fountain in Corvallis' Riverfront Park, then follow Highway 20 to Albany and the Calapooia Brewing Co. on Water Avenue.

Riders of all levels of ability are welcome.

The multi-use path between Albany and Corvallis has been in the planning stages for several years.

Roger Irvin, public works director for Benton County, said recently the county had obtained funds from the Oregon Department of Transportation to design the first part, a segment within Corvallis.

Eventually, according to the proposal, the path would parallel the Toledo Branch rail line. It would allow for bike travel away from Highway 20, where motor traffic is sometimes heavy and always fast, making cyclists fear for their safety.

Irvin said federal economic stimulus funds had not been sought for the project because it isn't ready for construction. Right-of-way and design issues would have to be solved first.

ODOT, however, has approved $460,000 toward the first segment, from Circle Boulevard to Manchester Street in Corvallis, under its transportation enhancement program.

The path also has been recommended as the top priority for another $581,000 under the same program, with a decision by the Oregon Transportation Commission due this spring, according to the ODOT website.

Hawley said that while funding for the project is being decided, "a public show of support in favor of alternative transportation could sway decision-makers towards raising the priority of the project."

As a concept, the Albany Public Works Department shows a portion of the path within the city limits as part of its new transportation system plan.

The city plan shows the path using the railroad bridge across the Willamette River and following the railroad right of way to the western urban growth boundary.

But Albany Public Works Director Diane Dennis said this might prove too expensive. It would be more cost-effective to stop the Albany leg of the rail path at Spring Hill Drive and bring it into town on existing bridges.

Putting the project in the plan makes it eligible - if the City Council approves - for funding from local transportation systems development charges on new construction.