Public Comment Sought on Replacement of Sheepshead Creek Bridge

The National Park Service (NPS) is considering replacing the Sheepshead Creek Bridge, which is located on Beach Road in Accomack County, Virginia, and provides the only public access road to the Chincoteague National Wildlife Refuge and Tom's Cove recreational beach within Assateague Island National Seashore. The existing bridge is a 78-foot concrete slab bridge that was built in the late 1970's. The bridge exhibits typical signs of concrete deterioration on the underside of the deck, cracks on the top of the deck, and hairline cracks on the concrete bent piles. The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) has recommended replacement of the bridge, raising the bridge grade two feet to increase freeboard, and reconstruction of approximately 565 feet of Beach Road to accommodate the two-foot rise in bridge grade. The new bridge would improve travel safety and would be more resistant to salt water.

An Environmental Assessment will be prepared in compliance with the National Environmental Policy Act to provide the decision-making framework that 1) analyzes a reasonable range of alternatives to meet project objectives, 2) evaluates issues and impacts to park resources and values, and 3) identifies mitigation measures to lessen the degree or extent of these impacts.

The public is invited to provide input on the proposal for the Replacement of Sheepshead Creek Bridge. Comments received during the scoping period will be used to help define the issues and concerns to be addressed in the environmental assessment.

Document Content:

Assateague Island National Seashore Sheepshead Creek Bridge News Release   (865.7 KB, PDF file) Disclaimer: Links within the above document(s) were valid as of the date published. Note: Some of the files may be in PDF format and can be viewed using the Adobe Acrobat Reader software. You may download a free copy of from Adobe Systems.