HOORAY! obx will get a new bridge to hatteras

The Bonner Bridge connects Pea Island with the northern Outer Banks.
The Bonner Bridge connects Pea Island with the northern Outer Banks.

In the best news to hit the OBX in a LONG time, NCDOT announced today that they will be building a new bridge over Oregon Inlet, replacing the aging Bonner Bridge and securing safe passage to Hatteras Island. Join us and every one who loves the Outer Banks as we raise a glass to celebrate the wrap up of this very long and tedious process! Rob Morris has all the deets in his story over on the Outer Banks Voice.

the aging Bonner Bridge
The aging Bonner Bridge over Oregon Inlet. Photo courtesy Outer Banks Voice

“Twenty years after planning began and nine months after secret legal negotiations started, a new bridge over Oregon Inlet will finally be built.

The North Carolina Department of Transportation announced today that state and federal agencies have come to an agreement with environmental groups over construction of a span parallel to the 50-year-old Bonner Bridge.

Terms of the settlement of a lawsuit filed by Defenders of Wildlife and the National Wildlife Refuge Association include stopping construction of a permanent bridge over the inlet formed by Hurricane Irene in 2011.

Instead, the NCDOT has agreed to plan for bypassing the inlet in the Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge and another problem area, Mirlo Beach, with “structures” on the Pamlico Sound.

“Under the agreement, NCDOT will also consider options that would move vulnerable portions of N.C. Highway 12 out of the southern half of Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge and into Pamlico Sound. The Bonner Bridge is in frequent need of repair and maintenance and the replacement is needed for the safety of drivers and the economic vitality of the Outer Banks,” a NCDOT statement said.”

[box type=”bio”] Read the rest of the story on the Outer Banks Voice![/box]