David Sky lives in
Concord.

One of Concord’s hidden jewels is the multi-use path that runs from Eastman Street in East Concord to Delta Drive at the McAuliffe-Shepard Discovery Center.

For a bicyclist, there are really only 3 choices for crossing the I-93 highway: This multi-use path; the funnel of death that is the Loudon Road-Centre Street corridor that runs by the Exit 14 I-93 on and off ramps; or the Manchester Street-Main Street corridor that runs by the Exit 13 I-93 on and off ramps.

Understandably, this multi-use path is certainly the least conflict-free of the alternatives.

Further, the multi-use path is a key component of the city’s designated north-south bike route running through the city, and a key component in the city’s designation as a Bike Friendly Community by the League of American Cyclists.

It’s a true gem.

Hidden because the path has become so overgrown, one can’t travel the path without running into vegetation. Remains of a homeless camp lie strewn next to the path. A wooden fence that runs parallel to the path is in disarray. It’s a real mess… and a real eyesore.

My story, and I don’t know if it’s true, is that Tom Walton, who passed in 2023, used to voluntarily care for the path. Today, in attempting to find someone to care for the path, city officials say that it’s not their responsibility and state officials say it’s not their responsibility. Some allege that it may be NHTI’s responsibility. Others imply that with the plans for the I-93 widening, that any attention given to this path can wait until then.

Two years ago, I was in a head-on, bicycle-on-bicycle collision on a section of the path that bends at a 90-degree angle. It’s impossible to see what’s ahead on the path, as the corner is filled with bushes and other types of vegetation. The Central New Hampshire Bicycle Coalition, to the best of my knowledge, has agreed to pay for a mirror, akin to those often seen at the end of driveways, to enhance safety and visibility. The only reason it hasn’t been installed yet is because nobody can identify any authority that will grant permission for the installation of the mirror.

It is so frustrating as a citizen to make inquiries into a problem only to keep hearing from authorities that it’s not their responsibility. It reminds me of the time there was a broken vase in the house. When I asked the kids who did it, they said the same thing.