YORKTOWN — In November, Colonial National Historical Park will move into the second phase of repairs to the historic Colonial Parkway, and to learn more about the project, citizens can attend an informal public meeting on Oct. 24.
The meeting will be held at James City County Government Center, Building F Board of Supervisor’s Room at 101 Mounts Bay Road, Williamsburg.
Those interested in learning more about the rehabilitation — including project accomplishments, closures and detours, future phases and public safety topics — are invited to attend.
“We are excited to enter this new and final major phase of construction on the Parkway Rehabilitation Project and begin the process of lifting some closures from the first phase,” said Superintendent Jerri Marr. “We understand the impacts that these closures and openings have on local travel and appreciate your patience and understanding as we enter the next critical phase of this project. Please continue to observe speed limit signs and read the messages on the electronic variable message signs, detour signs, caution signs and closure signs.”
Doors will open at 6 p.m., with brief presentations at 6:30 p.m. and again at 7:30 p.m. The meeting will follow an open house format, with opportunities for questions and to review of details with project staff, according to NPS.
The County Government Center is accessible, NPS said, with available parking and accessible spaces in the meeting rooms.
For those unable to attend in person, accessible project information will be available on the Colonial Parkway Rehabilitation website following the meeting.
Completed in 1957, time and use have taken a toll on the scenic 23-mile-long parkway that connects the sites of Virginia’s historic triangle of Jamestown, Yorktown and Williamsburg.
Made possible with approximately $123 million in funding from the Great American Outdoors Act (GAOA) Legacy Restoration Fund, the full rehabilitation project is expected to be completed by June 2026.
New Closures
The first phase of construction is nearing completion, and the next phase, which will begin next month, will have a new set of closures and detours, according to the park. This is due to the presence of heavy machinery, construction traffic, rubble, voids, uneven lanes and surfaces — and, in some cases, closed bridges.
The traveling public, including bikers and pedestrians, need to be aware of the closures, which are critical to protecting the health and safety of both workers and visitors, NPS said. The website will continue to offer project news, updates and information on closures, detours and other impacts.
New work closures will begin at Penniman Road Bridge up to, and including, the area known as the Williamsburg Circle. Meanwhile, the current closure from Route 199 to the Williamsburg Circle will remain in effect, meaning the Colonial Parkway will be closed, with no visitor access from Penniman Road Bridge, through Williamsburg to Route 199. Visitors should follow posted detour signs.
As work is completed and conditions become safe, NPS said it will reopen segments of the road. The closure from Felgate’s Creek to Cheatham Annex, for example, will be lifted when this phase begins. Visitors will be able to travel along the parkway from Fusiliers Road to Cheatham Annex.
As work is completed within the segment that runs from Route 199 to Williamsburg Circle, sections will reopen when it is safe to do so, the park service added.
The current closures from Ballard Street in Yorktown to Fusiliers Road and both Highway 17 access ramps will remain in effect throughout this new phase of the project. When work is substantially complete and bridges are replaced, NPS will reopen this section of the parkway.
The park began the Colonial Parkway’s first major rehabilitation in nearly 70 years last August. Ten miles of the Colonial Parkway will be repaired between now and July 2026, when the nation will commemorate the 250th anniversary of independence, it said, revitalizing infrastructure that has served for up to 90 years and ensuring its functionality for the next 40 to 50.
The project includes the rehabilitation of exposed pavement, the repair of eleven bridges, and the rehabilitation of the Williamsburg Tunnel.
The work will also enhance climate resilience through improved stormwater management, reconditioned shoulders and ditches, enlarged culverts and armored drainage channels, NPS said, while preserving the cultural landscape by replicating historic exposed aggregate pavement, brick bridges and brick culvert headwalls.
