Eyes on the Path: Arroyo Seco Bike/Walk Path Damaged, But Passable

The Arroyo Seco bike/walk path is damaged, but remains passable. It appears that the damage resulted from last week’s heavy rains.

The 2.1-mile Arroyo Seco path extends from Northeast L.A.’s Montecito Height Recreation Center near Avenue 43 to Arroyo Seco Park near York Boulevard at the border of the cities of L.A. and South Pasadena. Unlike most southern California bike paths which run along the top of channel walls, the Arroyo Seco path is located in the bed of the channel.

Reports of the damage first appeared in a Facebook post by the Eastside Bike Club, picked up by Biking in L.A.

The most extensive damage is located just downstream of Avenue 64/Marmion Way. About ten feet of the path platform washed away.

On Sunday, cyclists dismounted to cross the missing chunk of path. Pedestrians, of course, walked across.

A smaller damaged area is located near Avenue 52. There a portion of a metal plate was dislodged.

With the plate off, the path remains easily passable on bike, but the width is effectively cut in half.

On Sunday, an L.A. County Flood Control worker on site mentioned that he thought that the city of L.A. would be responsible for repairing the bike path. This morning, Streetsblog emailed the L.A. Department of Transportation. When more details on repair plans are available, this article will be updated.

Added 2/7: Per LADOT email: LADOT is currently working with the Bureau of Street Services and Department of General Services for the permitting process to repair damaged pavement on the Arroyo Seco bike path. As soon as weather permits (dry season), we’ll have a better timeline of the project completion. In the meantime, we’ll continue to inspect the rest of the path and take necessary action to avoid any unforeseen issues. As you may already know County has already closed the entry to the path until further notice.

Added 1/23: L.A. City Councilmember Jose Huizar recently introduced a motion to close the gap between the two Arroyo Seco path segments in the cities of L.A. and South Pasadena.