Parkway reopens along damaged stretch
The Blue Ridge Parkway has reopened a closed section of the motor road — from Ox Creek Road in Asheville to Mount Mitchell State Park — using temporary bypass lanes.
The speed limit of the previously closed section of roadway has been reduced to 15 miles per hour and officials are warning the reduced speed limit will be strictly enforced. The Craggy Gardens visitor center and picnic area, located along the closed stretch, was also reopened.
A 500-foot by-pass allows traffic to pass through an area affected by structural damage as a result of unusually heavy rainfall earlier this summer. Parkway staff will most likely close the stretch and the detour traffic off the parkway by November so construction can resume to stabilize the road’s slope and repair the area permanently.
