Bryson City intersections getting DOT attention

Jessica Webb

editor@thesmokymountaintimes.com

There’s a right place and a right time, but drivers coming through downtown Bryson City at around 3:30 p.m. during the summer might argue they’re in the wrong place at the wrong time as traffic quickly piles up between schools letting out and train passengers arriving/departing from the depot. North Carolina Department of Transportation is now moving forward on intersection improvements in four places downtown that could help.

The plans were first announced in 2017, and contractors began working on the improvements this fall 2022. Work has started at Slope Street and Bryson Walk and at Depot/Ramseur and Deep Creek Road intersection. The project also includes improvements for Everett Street, but according to DOT, utility conflicts have slowed down the start date for work on Everett.

District Engineer Nathan Tanner describes the projects to include the following work: “The original scope of work at each intersection includes drainage pipe and box installation, sidewalk, curb-ramps, decorative crosswalks and paving,” he said. “The project also includes a minimal amount of underground utility relocation.”

At Ramseur Street, the road is also being realigned to better suit the flow of traffic.

The date of completion should provide an ample buffer before the tourism season kicks off in earnest with work finishing my May 8, 2023. Tanner estimated they expect contractors to finish in February pending holiday season and utility delays.

“We will enforce holiday lane closure restrictions on the contractor to have the roads open for all holidays,” he noted.

Tanner did not respond to more specific questions about addressing the traffic pattern at Bryson Walk and Slope Street, which will remain unchanged in this project. Originally when the project was proposed, DOT favored a roundabout.