By Noah Jeffries and Matt Harvey, The Exponent Telegram
WASHINGTON, DC — The Federal Highway Administration will now consider two potential routes for Corridor H over Backbone Mountain: One that crosses the Blackwater Canyon near Coketon and another that pushes north near Benbush.
Previously, the route near Coketon had been the only one under consideration and had been on the books and in planning since 2007.
The Federal Highway Administration’s Notice of Intent doesn’t eliminate that route; instead, it “refines” it, with some consideration for nearby Tucker County High School, while still taking mostly the same path.
The route near Benbush has been added after a coalition of residents, business owners and groups from the Thomas and Davis area clamored for it.
That coalition, called the Go North Alliance, issued a statement Friday on the Notice of Intent.
“We are delighted that the FHWA has recognized that the 1970s-era ‘preferred route’ for Corridor H is way out of date. We don’t need giant eyesores in our most important tourist areas,” said alliance members Saundra Goss and Walt Ranalli of Sirianni’s Cafe in Davis.
“A Northern Alternative Route will protect our region’s growing tourism economy,” Ranalli said. “But the current preferred route, known as the ROPA, would damage the history, ecology and community of the Thomas and Davis and Blackwater Canyon region. We want to maintain the integrity of the current outdoor recreational experience and our small-town charm.”
