Aylmer Old Rail Trail (Front St and Centre St)

Located along the old railway trail across from the Rapido convenience store, this stop transforms underused public land into pollinator habitat. This project is bult in collaboration with Pollinate Aylmer, Mères au front de l’Outaouais and Amis de la Marina d’Aylmer, the neighbourhood assocation taking care of nearby vegetable raised beds.

It demonstrates the potential for habitat creation to support biodiversity on marginal urban infrastructure.

The corridor along the oldrailway creates a natural link between other Butterflyway stops. Its high visibility exposes residents and cyclists to the native pollinator habitats in everyday public spaces.  We have heard positive feedback from neighbours and especially kids who use the path on their way to school.

The workstarted in the fall 2025 with permission from the City of Gatineau. The pollinator habitat was created with donated plants from Localeaf Nursery, as well as seed donations and funding from Canadian Wildlife Federation‘s Monarch Habitat Restoration Program.  Tower Tree Services also donated a large amount of woodchips, enough for the site and the shared veggie garden.

In June 2026, we added more plants grown by Pollinate Aylmer volunteers. We also hope to add native bushes and trees in the future to further support bidioversity at this site.