You may remember that last year RIDOT was planning to repave a fairly large portion of the East Bay Bike Path. Well they didn’t do that, instead opting to do spot fixes on the worst portions of the path. We supported this decision, as a larger project would have necessitated a detour for more time, and we believed spot fixes were adequate to address the path’s maintenance needs.
We now have received word that RIDOT will be conducting these spot repairs this summer. Below are the best details we have at the moment. It seems that most repairs will not require detours, nor should they take more than a day. We will continue to keep you alerted as we learn more.
From RIDOT Deputy Director Peter Garino:
We have been working to address several issues at the East Bay Bike Path that have resulted from age, the elements, and tree root damage. Starting shortly after July 4, we plan to work on four specific sections, listed below in chronological order, with a goal of completing our improvements by September. Each section will be completed in separate increments and will have minimal impact to bike path users.
- Bristol – from Independence Park to Poppasquash Road: we have some washouts to repair, with efforts to fix the pavement, and add new stone or rip rap. Users may have to walk/bike on the grass or sidewalk during these repairs, slated to take about one day.
- Barrington – from County Road to the Barrington Foot Bridge: we will make pavement repairs of about 200 feet total for some areas that have been damaged by tree roots. We will need to utilize a small detour for about one to two days during this operation. People will need to use the sidewalk to get around the area and back on the path.
- Barrington –We plan to replace certain boards that have rotted out, replace nails with screws, and add some pavement at the front of the bridge to provide a smoother transition from bridge to path. This work should also take about one day to complete.
- Barrington: from Middle Road to the YMCA: there are two sections of pavement (146’ and 183’) that we will replace, during which time may need to divert any users around the site. We anticipate this operation to take about one day