We get a lot of questions here at MassBike, and we like to think we also give some pretty good answers. We realized that sharing these questions and answers on our website would be a valuable resource to others looking for the same information.

We got this question from Farzad about a crash he had on the esplanade.

hello massbike,

i'm a cyclist living in cambridge and i use the paul dudley white bike path along the charles to get to work. i've noticed that the city seems to plow the path but does not salt it, and, as a result, the path becomes a sheet of ice in the winter. i'm upset because on my way to work on friday i hit a huge patch of ice as i tried to go around a runner by the longfellow bridge, and i hit the ground hard and badly fractured my clavicle. i go back in two weeks for more x-rays to determine whether i'll need surgery. i'm writing to get your help in determining what my rights are, if i have a case. thank you so much for your advocacy and for helping make MA a better place for cyclists!

cheers,
farzad

Hello Farzad

Yikes! I hope you heal up fast, I have broken a collar bone before, and while painful doesn't always need surgery. Good luck with the recovery.

The bike path on the Esplanade is maintained and plowed by the DCR, not the City of Boston. We would guess that the DCR probably limits or prohibits the use of salt and deicing agents on the Esplanade due to the proximity to the river and risk of contamination from runoff, however we do not know for sure.

For information about how the DCR clears the bike path in the winter, we recommend contacting Samantha Overton, Director of Urban Parks and Recreation [email protected].

Unfortunately MassBike is unable to give legal advice. For legal advice, we recommend consulting a lawyer. We recommend Andrew Fischer of Jason & Fischer, 617-423-7904, is very good, other lawyers also handle bicycle cases.

Hope this helps