A critical section of the Oak Leaf Trail running along the Root River Line has been temporarily closed.
The trail runs underneath Highway 100 in Wauwatosa, offering bicyclists and pedestrians a safe crossing underneath the six-lane state trunk highway.
Milwaukee County Parks closed the trail under Highway 100 to perform maintenance on a bridge, but the closure was recently extended into the “foreseeable future” as engineering crews “inspect and repair structural concerns” along the bridge.
There’s a metal cover over the bridge, but Parks doesn’t want Oak Leaf Trail users crossing the bridge right now “out of an abundance of caution,” Peter Bratt, director of skilled trades and operations told Urban Milwaukee.
Parks has suggested a detour on its interactive Oak Leaf Trail map, with trail users crossing Highway 100 along W. Watertown Plank Road.
The Root River Line, which is now cut off at Highway 100, runs north and south through the southwestern quarter of the county. It offers connections to other sections of the more than 135-mile trail network.