When complete, the trail will connect 19 cities spread over seven counties, stretching from the edge of the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex to the Texarkana metropolitan area along the Arkansas border.

Three private organizations Rails-to-Trails Conservancy (RTC) 1997, Greater Paris Development Foundation (GPDF) 1996, and Chaparral Rails to Trails Inc. (CRT) 1995.

GC&SF became a Texas-based subsidiary of the Atchison, Topeka and Santa Fe Railroad in the same year, 1886.

In 1990, the Kiamichi Railroad, a regional company with a presence in nearby states of Arkansas and Oklahoma, desired access into Dallas from their mainline in Purcell, OK.

This segment of railway would provide the connection, and thus, they purchased this line from the AT&SF and created a subsidiary company, the Chaparral Railroad, to operate it.

Large sections of the trail through Collin, Fannin, Hunt, Lamar and Red River counties have been cleared.

The Cities of Farmersville, Clarksville, and New Boston have also been successful in obtaining a TPWD grants to construct trails on their sections of the NETT corridor.