Ottawa County, Oklahoma, has decided to grind up the original asphalt and make other significant alterations to the 9-foot-wide “Sidewalk Highway” of original Route 66 between Miami and Afton.
The county recently took the action despite pleas from the Oklahoma Route 66 Association and other historic preservationists to keep the century-old “Ribbon Road” intact as much as possible.
The county will patch the concrete curbs where possible, but mill the original asphalt and replace it with a modern, inauthentic mixture. The shoulders will have chip-and-seal lanes with stripes.
In a video, association President Rhys Martin conceded the need to repair the road but expressed disappointment the county rejected proposals from the association and other stakeholders to preserve the old, unique highway.
“Like I said earlier, we understand the road needs attention, and it is important for a road to serve its function safely,” Martin said in the video. “However, this isn’t just any road. People stop in Ottawa County to see the Ribbon Road, to get out and touch it, to drive on the same pavement that carried Model T’s and ’57 Chevys to Los Angeles or Chicago that brings in tourism dollars and sales tax revenue.
“When this historic roadway is forever altered to remove its unique character, those travelers may just keep going.”
Martin recommended that preservationists sign a Change.org petition, if they haven’t already.
More information may be found about the Sidewalk Highway or Ribbon Road in the association’s dedicated webpage here.
When the highway was paved in the early 1920s a few years before the federal government created U.S. 66, the state of Oklahoma decided to make it only 9 feet wide. The legend goes the state had only enough money to cover half the distance between Miami and Afton. So it instead made the road half as wide.
(Image of the Ribbon Road between Miami and Afton, Oklahoma, courtesy of the Oklahoma Route 66 Association)