Prepare to shift! Cantrell Road Pipeline Work Update

As mentioned in previous articles, the work to replace a pipeline near Episcopal Middle School on Cantrell Road has, and will continue to disrupt traffic along the River Trail at that location. This notice arrived from Sandra Ballew, Asst. Project Manager:

With regret, we are going to have to close the bike trail on North Street starting Monday, Feb 2 through Friday, Feb 13^th.    One suggestion is the cyclist could stay on the south side of Cantrell on the sidewalk or if City has north side of Cantrell ready they could move over to that side.  We will have a trench dug laying pipe on North Street so it will not be passable.  We do have message boards in place with the notice of closure as of this afternoon.

 

Anything you could do to get the word out to the cyclist would be appreciated. 

Sandra Ballew, Asst. PM

S & J Construction Co., Inc.

Though it is possible to use the sidewalk on the south side of Cantrell, there is at least one utility pole that will require a dismount to pass. The city has widened the sidewalk in some areas on the north side of Cantrell to make it possible to ride around the utility poles there. This is the preferred detour, though it does require riders to cross Cantrell and deal with the 6 driveways on that side of the road near Dillard's HQ.
Westbound riders can cross at the light at the ECS driveway, while westbound riders will need to plan ahead and cross at the signals at either State or Chester Streets. Eastbound riders can use those signals to re-cross Cantrell to regain the bike route along Markham St.
There should be some temporary signage in place to help direct trail users. The best plan is to avoid the area for the time being.

I will say that the contractor has stayed true to their promise to keep the trail passable during construction. It is a big project in a tight spot and they have made a real effort, in cooperation with the City of Little Rock, to meet the needs trail users.