RODANTHE, N.C. — After a multi-month delay, a new bridge on the Outer Banks is finally open.
The North Carolina Department of Transportation (NCDOT) announced that the Rodanthe Bridge aka the "Jug Handle" Bridge in Dare County is open to traffic.
The 2.4-mile bridge bypasses a section of NC Highway 12 that is prone to significant ocean overwash and flooding. The road is frequently used by tourists and locals in the Rodanthe and Avon region of the Outer Banks.
The bridge extends over the Pamlico Sound from the southern end of the Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge to the northern end of Rodanthe.
A ribbon-cutting ceremony was held for the bridge back in April, but its actual opening was delayed after NCDOT said its pavement markings did not meet their specifications for quality or reflectivity. A new contractor was needed to replace the markings and re-paint stripes on the bridge and its intersections.
Construction on the bridge began in 2018.
The bridge was deemed necessary to avoid a portion of NC 12 that frequently floods due to ocean overwash. Just this past May, the stretch of road was shut down because of serious flooding. The weather system that caused that flooding was the same one that caused two beachfront homes to collapse into the ocean.
WFMY News 2 contributed to this report.