NCDOT wants to ease Pisgah National Forest traffic, as hikers, bikers, anglers jam the roads

PISGAH FOREST – The beauty of Looking Glass Falls, trout fishing in Davidson River and miles of challenging hiking and mountain biking trails aren't the only things that make it difficult to leave the section of Pisgah National Forest along U.S. 276 here after a day of fun.

There's also the traffic.

The state Department of Transportation is holding a meeting Thursday afternoon to hear the public's thoughts on plans to reconfigure the U.S. 64/U.S. 276/N.C. 280 intersection east of Brevard that is the often-busy gateway to one of the nation's most popular sections of national forest. Comments will be taken until June 15.

Traffic congestion on U.S. 276 to the northwest of the intersection is "awful on Saturdays and Sundays in the afternoon" during the summer and fall, said Art Odell, manager of Sycamore Cycles, a bicycle shop near the intersection.

That section of road leads from where the waterfalls, creeks and trails are on Pisgah National Forest.

"I've personally seen (cars) backed up to the ranger station, and I've heard stories of it being even worse," Odell said. The Pisgah District Ranger Station he referred to is 1.5 miles northwest of the intersection.

DOT has also seen the lines of vehicles on U.S. 276, said Jonathan Woodard, Division 14 project engineer.

The agency has two proposals for people to consider.

One would add more turning lanes at the main intersection and others in the area. The other would involve building a roundabout at the intersection and another nearby, along with other improvements.

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DOT says the roundabout would move traffic more efficiently, offer safer bicycle and pedestrian crossings and be a better fit with local plans for the area. However, Woodard said, it would probably require more right-of-way.

The roundabout would not displace any businesses in the area, he said, but would probably eliminate some parking spaces. DOT has not yet decided which alternative it prefers and wants the public's opinions before making a choice, he said.

Construction is scheduled to begin in 2021, he said.

DOT's long-range plans also call for widening about 2.2 miles of U.S. 276 from the intersection north past the ranger station to Avery Creek Road. The road would go from two lanes to three and bike lanes would be added.

Work on that is scheduled to start in 2020. 

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Some of the congestion in or near the U.S. 64/U.S. 276/N.C. 280 intersection appears to be the usual weekday rush hour traffic, Woodard said, but the people sitting in line on U.S. 276 are almost all recreational visitors.

"There's no other way out," Odell said. "If you're in the forest, you pretty much have to go that way."

Odell said he started noticing the backups only a few years ago, but the problem has increased significantly since then.

He attributed the change partly to the general increase in tourism in Transylvania County and Western North Carolina and partly to more and more awareness of the mountain biking trails in the upper Davidson River valley and other nearby areas.

"It's known definitely around the country and we have people visiting from abroad" to mountain bike, he said.

To go or comment

Thursday's meeting will 4-7 p.m. in Transylvania County Library, 212 S. Gaston St., in Brevard. It is an informal drop-in meeting and people can come at any time. There will be no formal presentation.

Comments or questions may be submitted at the meeting or via telephone, mail or email until June 15 to Jonathan Woodard, NCDOT Project Engineer, 253 Webster Road, Sylva, NC 28779; jwoodard@ncdot.gov or 828-631-5481.