East Bay Bike Path
Fourteen paved miles pass harbor industry, coves, marshes, towns, parks, and former rail alignments along Narragansett Bay’s eastern shore.
Artwork inspired by Edward Mitchell Bannister
The East Bay path is both transportation and landscape transect. Its character changes from Providence waterfront and working edges through Barrington marshes to Bristol’s compact historic center, revealing how a former rail corridor links communities rather than bypassing them.
Treat the route as shared, not a bicycle speedway. Plan construction detours and bridge conditions, carry repair supplies, and choose a turnaround based on wind rather than mileage alone. Road crossings and busy town segments require more attention than scenic photographs suggest. Food, restrooms, and repair options cluster unevenly, so the town sequence should shape breaks as much as distance does.
- Length
- About 14.5 miles
- Surface
- Mostly paved
- Endpoints
- Providence and Bristol
Quick guide
- Check detours
- Bridge work can change the official route.
- Yield predictably
- Signal and pass slowly on a shared path.
Know before you go
- Check detours
- Bridge work can change the official route.
- Yield predictably
- Signal and pass slowly on a shared path.
- Read the shoreline
- Watch industry give way to marsh and town.
- Save for headwind
- Bay wind can reshape the return effort.
Good to know
Temporary on-road detours can be unsuitable for inexperienced riders. The path has busy crossings, limited shade, and heavy weekend traffic; carry water and a flat-repair plan.
Notice these
- Providence waterfront
- Barrington marshes
- Bristol terminus