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Residents press town on Meadow Road sidewalk plan and whether it will allow bikes
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Summary
At a March 11 Farmington meeting, a resident asked whether the Meadow Road sidewalk project is intended to accommodate bicyclists; town staff said the project is a sidewalk — not a bicycle trail — and noted bicycle access on sidewalks is set by local ordinance, not by the design alone.
Bruce Cyr, the town staff liaison who led the meeting, told attendees the Meadow Road item on the March 11 agenda was brought forward at a committee member's request to show the current plan and its construction impacts.
Paul Krell, a public attendee who identified himself and gave his contact number, said he believed cyclists would not be routed onto a Meadow Road sidewalk and said he opposed moving the route from the street edge onto the sidewalk. "I was of the impression that bikes would not be going on the...metal road sidewalk," Krell said, asking whether the review was informational or a final decision.
Cyr replied the meeting was an informational review and stressed, "This is not a trail... This is a normal sidewalk," adding he had not said bikes would be prohibited. He explained whether bicycles use a sidewalk is determined by local ordinance and noted those rules vary between towns. Committee members said the town should continue outreach and try to coordinate with neighboring towns and school officials to align expectations.
During a later map review, staff showed a proposed south-side alignment for a sidewalk running from Wisteria Lane along Meadow Road to Everett Avenue, crossing Judson Lane and tying into the regional trail near New Bridal Avenue. Cyr said the alignment aims to connect nearby neighborhoods to school and trail access, but he warned that some intersections — notably the busy Route 177/Meadow Road area — lack sidewalks and are not safe to drop off walkers or cyclists until further roadway improvements are completed.
Committee members and attendees raised practical concerns: potential parking pressure in the Highlands, winter maintenance and liability if the town were to plow or salt sidewalks treated as roads, and whether easements from private property owners would be required for the route shown. Cyr said the town plans to proceed with engineering, surveys and outreach; he also emphasized that this is a design-stage review and that construction funding would be pursued separately once design work is complete.
What happens next: staff said they will complete the design-stage work (surveys and route alternatives) and return with more detailed options. The meeting did not record a formal vote on the Meadow Road alignment; dates and final decisions on bicycle access and construction funding were not specified at the meeting.
