Drips and drabs, odds and ends

A few things to note from today...

4WD Access Route Work Completed

Damaged pavement removed from an area near the S-Curves on NC 12

About an hour or so ahead of schedule, the four-wheel drive access route re-opened in the 3:00 o'clock hour after being closed earlier this morning for maintenance, including work to

level the sand in the areas where tires created deep ruts.  Today's work will result in a safer, more stable ride.

Installation of the culverts on Nov. 29

Crews also removed damaged pavement and graded the road where the four-wheel drive route connects to N.C. 12 -  Mirlo Beach and about 0.4 miles north of the S-Curves. This is part of the work necessary to rebuild and reopen N.C. 12 to all traffic on or by Dec. 25, weather permitting.

Weather...Again

Members of the sandbag crew at work

It was a blustery day out on NC 12 and the wind kicked up from the Northeast.  We're keeping tabs on what the conditions may do in the next 24-48 hours or so.  This nifty interactive map from the folks at the National Weather Service office in Newport/Morehead City shows you the conditions - including wind speeds and gusts and wave height.  Our crews have been installing 15-foot-long sandbags along a 0.4-mile section of N.C. 12 at the S-Curves just north of Rodanthe on Pea Island. This in order to protect the road from ocean overwash.  Drainage culverts have also been installed to help lessen the damage caused by conditions that generate overwash.

The sandbag work was done under the watchful eyes of our very special "offshore inspectors"

We Have a Date!

Calm weather conditions have prevailed in Dare County and our crews have made significant repairs to N.C. 12 and we are now able to move to the next step - a   temporary solution to reconnect all traffic on Hatteras Island to points north of Mirlo Beach. This will be a multi-step process that will include installing sandbags, reconstructing dunes, and rebuilding the road near Rodanthe where Hurricane Sandy and a pair of Nor’easters damaged the highway.

What's Happening Now
Crews are currently placing 15-foot-long sandbags along a 0.4-mile section of N.C. 12 at the S-Curves just north of Rodanthe on Pea Island. In all, 1,800 new sandbags will go in to create a protective barrier between the ocean and the road. Once the sandbags are in place, we'll rebuild the dunes on top of the sandbags.

At the same time, broken pavement will be hauled off from this section of N.C. 12. After sandbags are installed at the most heavily damaged parts of the highway, crews will begin rebuilding the road where it was located before the series of storms hit. And as you know, all work is heavily dependent on the weather and tidal conditions.

Weather permitting, we hope to open the newly paved lanes of N.C. 12 to all traffic on or by Dec. 25. Until then, four-wheel drive vehicles must continue to pass through checkpoints at the temporary bridge on Pea Island and Mirlo Beach to travel between Hatteras Island and the mainland.

Motorists are reminded that any private vehicle larger than a one-ton truck cannot use the route in order to protect access and allow traffic to flow more efficiently. In addition, private trucks with trailers are not permitted. Two-wheel drive vehicles are not allowed on the route under any circumstance.
More information on N.C. 12 recovery efforts is available on our N.C. 12 Recovery webpage and N.C. 12 Facebook page. For the latest details on the emergency ferry route, as well as schedules for our regular ferry routes, call 1-800-BY-FERRY and press 1, or visit the NCDOT Ferry page.

Now that it's calmed down a bit...

Over the Thanksgiving holiday, the wind, tide and overall weather situation calmed down some and if you're a regular follower of our Facebook page or Twitter account, you know the four-wheel drive access has not been closed quite as frequently.

Four-wheel drive access on Friday, Nov

While surf conditions have calmed considerably,  normal tides are still at the edge of the old road. Traffic through the holiday weekend was very heavy over the four-wheel drive access, which was able to remain open through high tide on Saturday and Sunday.  Today at Rodanthe sandbag installation began at the south end. 

 

So, with the improving weather, what's next?  

  

Our engineers are out looking at the trouble spots today and tomorrow, and are evaluating options.  As soon as details are available we will let you know. 

We've also had some questions regarding other issues related to NC 12, beyond the S-curves/Rodanthe trouble spot:

 

Bonner Bridge: Paving is expected to take approximately one day.  Once that's finished, the crews will then move down to the temporary bridge to begin work.

Signal timing @ temporary bridge: The timing of this signal will not be changed. There was more traffic over the holiday.  Things should be back to a more ‘normal’ rate this week. Also, paving will begin at this site tomorrow and the temporary signal might be replaced with flaggers during paving hours. 

  

Four-wheel Drive Access times: Dare County Sheriff’s Department is escorting vehicles until 10 p.m. Safety and traffic volume are the main reasons for the 10:00 p.m. closure time.

Recovery Planning

Short-Term Recovery Plans:
NCDOT is currently holding meetings and taking part in discussions with partner agencies to determine the most efficient and reliable way to restore traffic to N.C. 12 on Pea Island near Mirlo Beach. NCDOT also is actively partnering with US Army Corps of Engineers to pursue emergency nourishment along this same area.

However, until rough seas calm and crews can fully assess the impacts of the most recent Nor’easter, the department cannot make a final decision.

In the meantime, we continue to work hard to keep the four-wheel drive route open each day for as long as tidal conditions allow. Rapid changes do cause overwash and force intermittent closures to ensure motorist safety. Check road status.

Long-Term Recovery Plans:
NCDOT is currently developing long-term solutions for the breaches caused by Hurricane Irene on the Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge and in Rodanthe in August 2011. These same areas were also impacted by Hurricane Sandy and two Nor’easters this year. Hurricane Irene video

After holding several public meetings and collecting input from a panel of coastal engineers and scientists, NCDOT is considering the following options:

• Replacing the temporary bridge on Pea Island with a permanent bridge within the existing easement; and

• Building a bridge from Pea Island to Rodanthe. One possibility includes elevating N.C. 12 onto a bridge within the existing easement, which would end just north of the community center and not require beach nourishment. Another option is constructing an approximately 2.5-mile bridge that would extend into the Pamlico Sound and connect back to Rodanthe just north of the Historic District.

These long-term solutions are currently moving through the environmental planning process required by the state and federal governments.

Coastal Monitoring Program
To gauge the changes to Pea Island for years to come, NCDOT has instituted a Coastal Monitoring Program along N.C. 12. Using aerial photography and field studies, the department can note where shifts and weak spots are occurring. This information helps NCDOT decide where and when to make future improvements to N.C. 12 from the south end of the Bonner Bridge to Rodanthe.

The Coastal Monitoring Program was put into effect as part of the Bonner Bridge Replacement Project in December 2010. Therefore, any of the alternatives (beach nourishment, road relocation and bridging) previously studied as part of the original environmental analysis could be considered for future phases.