For the last few weeks, crews have been busy installing the pilings that will support one of the new East Bay Bike Path bridges.

The recent work has been taking place in the Palmer River, where the new bridge will connect Warren and Barrington for bicyclists and pedestrians traveling along the bike path. Charles St. Martin, spokesman for the Rhode Island Department of Transportation, said the piling, or “bridge foundation” work began in July.

The replacement of the East Bay Bike Path bridges — one spanning the Palmer/Warren River and the other crossing the Barrington River — has been in the works for years.

In fact, it has been about five years since the Rhode Island Department of Transportation ordered the two bike path bridges closed. Officials eventually shifted bike and pedestrian traffic onto special boardwalks constructed on the nearby motor vehicle bridges.

The future of the bike path bridges appeared in doubt a few years ago, after state officials said the cost to construct the two new bridges was more than double the amount of money the state had allocated for the work. Federal funds secured by Sen. Jack Reed, however, ensured the project could proceed. 

There was an additional delay when DOT officials went for permitting from the Coastal Resources Management Council and faced a series of questions about the width of the sidewalks on the bridges. The old bridges were 18 feet wide with two, 4-foot sidewalks on either side. The new bridges will be 14 feet wide with two 2-foot sidewalks on either side. CRMC officials were concerned the narrower sidewalks could lead to conflicts between people fishing from the bridges and those crossing the bridges. 

Eventually, CRMC granted the permits as DOT officials altered plans to include additional areas for fishing — new plans call for a fishing pier just north of the bike path bridge on the Barrington River and a earthen bump-out near the bike path bridge at the Palmer River. 

Off-site work

St. Martin said the team from Aetna Bridge and VHB has been busy driving pilings into the bed of the Palmer River through the latter part of July and all of August, and will eventually move the in-water work to the Barrington River. (The two bike path bridges were bid as a single project.)

Meanwhile, the bridges themselves are being fabricated off-site and will be trucked in. According to information from the DOT website, the prefabricated modular truss bridge crossing the Barrington River will feature three 100-foot spans. The modular truss bridges are reportedly quicker to install and have a reduced impact on the environment, “as this lightweight design requires smaller foundational elements and piers. They also are easier structures to maintain, with a very long design life,” stated the DOT website.

According to the DOT, the contractor team will be working to minimize impacts to the shoreline during construction. 

“The low profile of the bridge design and its installation method also minimizes the impact and high cost of relocating nearby utility lines,” stated the website. 

Final completion of the bike path bridge replacement project is expected by the end of 2025, according to the DOT. 

The East Bay Bike Path Bridges were built in the 1880s as railroad bridges and were converted to bike paths in the 1980s.