OUTER BANKS, N.C. — Officials in the Town of Duck are preparing for the next phase of a shoreline resiliency project along NC-12.
It involves raising the roadway to further cut down on flooding that can leave it impassible. Officials have committed to an accelerated timeline to minimize disruptions.
“The road will be raised anywhere from a few inches to two-and-a-half feet to take into consideration potential sea level rise in the future and to help minimize future overwash from storm events on the sound side,” said Sandy Cross, senior planner for the Town of Duck.
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Severe ocean overwash causes NC-12 closures in Dare Co. and Hyde Co.
Cross said to minimize traffic disruptions, the Fred Smith Company has committed to working 24 hours a day, five days a week on the roadway phase. That should cut the expected time of construction on NC-12 from seven weeks to four weeks.
“Weather contingent, equipment contingent we feel that’s going to benefit travelers both north of Duck and in Duck in terms of inconvenience and minimize that,” Cross said.
The company will also take steps to reduce light and noise pollution during the night work to reduce the impact on nearby residents or visitors.
The project has been in the works for years, but really kicked into gear after the town received a Building Resilient Infrastructure and Communities (BRIC) grant from FEMA last spring.
The timing worked out in the end. It allowed officials to begin and finish the roadwork in the off-season.
Watch previous coverage: Severe ocean overwash causes NC-12 closures in Dare Co. and Hyde Co.
During earlier phases of the project, crews created a new buffer along the Currituck Sound shoreline and relocated stones to provide more protection.
“The storm this weekend could very well be an example of what we’re trying to avoid,” Cross said. “We did not see any overwash, we did not see any impacts to travel north and south as a result of that storm, and partly that’s because we already have the sills in place.”
That’s in contrast to past events like Hurricane Irene and Tropical Storm Michael that sent water and rocks over the road blocking the highway.
“With this project, we will not see something like that unless it’s extremely extraordinary, beyond a storm like Hurricane Irene or even Tropical Storm Michael,” Cross said.
People who live in work in the area are relieved by the change, but are bracing for the impacts of the next phase of the work. Traffic will be down to one lane in the area.
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“The biggest thing is just the traffic you know flowing both directions, because if they usually have one lane with the road open, you have stoppages, of course, continually,” said Mark Clippinger, who works in the area.
But Clippinger agrees with town officials who say the results of the project will be worth the wait.
While the roadwork is scheduled to be finished by the end of January, the overall project is expected to continue until May 2024.
That work includes marsh plantings that will form the final piece of the mitigation efforts in the area.
