Editing Footpath (section)

{{short description|Thoroughfare for pedestrians}}
{{About|pedestrian paths not next to a road|paths beside roads|Sidewalk|other uses|Footpath (disambiguation)}}
[[File:Lush_greenery_of_the_Kangla_Fort_(Kangla_Palace),_the_ancient_capital_of_Kangleipak_—_Early_modern_era_street_lamps_—_Old_Footpath.jpg|thumb|Footpath inside the [[Kangla Fort]], [[Imphal]]]]
[[File:Spruces and pines along Myrstigen 1.jpg|thumb|upright|Footpath through the forest in [[Brastad]], Sweden]]

A '''footpath''' (also pedestrian way, [[walking trail]], [[nature trail]]) is a type of [[thoroughfare]] that is intended for use only by [[pedestrian]]s and not other forms of traffic such as [[Motor vehicle|motorized vehicles]], [[bicycle]]s and [[horseback|horses]]. They can be found in a wide variety of places, from the centre of cities, to farmland, to mountain ridges. Urban footpaths are usually paved, may have steps, and can be called [[alley]]s, lanes, steps, etc.

[[National park]]s, [[nature preserve]]s, [[conservation area]]s and other protected [[wilderness]] areas may have footpaths ([[trail]]s) that are restricted to pedestrians.
<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.nps.gov/vafo/planyourvisit/hikingtrails.htm |title=Trails – Valley Forge National Historical Park (U.S. National Park Service) |publisher=Nps.gov |access-date=2015-04-05}}</ref> 

The term 'footpath' includes pedestrian paths that are next to the road in [[Hiberno-English|Irish English]], [[Indian English]], [[Australian English]], and [[New Zealand English]] (known as 'pavement' in the [[British English]] and [[South African English]], or [[sidewalk]] in [[North American English]]).

A footpath can also take the form of a [[footbridge]], linking two places across a river.