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Residents urge council to reopen Anthony Road bridge, citing safety and maintenance concerns
Summary
Residents of Anthony Road told the Foster Town Council the bridge closure has trapped neighbors for decades and raised safety concerns from dead trees and emergency access; they asked the council to investigate prior surveys and plans for replacement.
Several Anthony Road residents told the Foster Town Council on June 12 that the long-closed Anthony Road bridge poses ongoing safety and access problems and urged the town to review plans for repair or replacement.
Walter May and Tom Hall, both long-time Anthony Road residents, described a bridge closure they said has lasted decades and argued the closure increases travel distance for school buses and residents, creates costs from additional mileage, and limits emergency access if trees fall across the road. May said he counted 58 dead trees along his stretch of road that he warned could fall in storms and trap residents.
"With 58 dead trees there, I would say there's a pretty good chance that we're gonna have one a month come down," Walter May said, describing a recent incident where a fallen tree sparked a fire and required the utility company to shut power before firefighters could safely extinguish the blaze.
Residents asked the council to locate survey documents and bridge-modification plans held at town hall and to investigate prior engineering work discussed with Rhode Island Department of Transportation staff. Tom Hall said he helped build multiple local bridges decades ago and argued that available steel materials and historical plans could support a replacement at lower cost if pursued.
Council staff said they would try to find the referenced survey from a previous planner and place the bridge topic on a future agenda as new business to investigate scope and cost. The council did not commit to a timeline or specific funding source at the meeting.
Public comments emphasized both the immediate public-safety concerns from tree falls and the perceived long-term cost of the closure in added fuel and travel time for school buses and residents.
