Driving Through Time - The Digital Blue Ridge Parkway
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About this Item
| Title | Road Construction |
| Title Note | Flat Top Road |
| Date | June 3, 1955 |
| Description | Shovel in cut on Flat Top Road, shows west elevation of Flat Top Structure in section 2G of the Blue Ridge Parkway. |
| Commentary | For nearly the entire length of the Blue Ridge Parkway the road is constructed as an undivided two-lane road. Along most of the Parkway the road is designed for a maximum speed of 50 mph, although grades and curves prevent most cars from reaching the Parkway speed limit of 45 mph. The roadway itself is built with a compacted stone base, generally surfaced by modern asphalt. Typically, the road is 21' wide with 4.5' stabilized turf shoulders. A distinctive feature of the Parkway road system is its lack of roadside edge striping, which helps the road blend in with the landscape. Although the Federal Highway Administration has called for edge striping as a safety provision, thus far roadway planners have resisted its implementation, outside of tunnel approaches. |
| Location |
Location Name: Milepost 294 Parkway Milepost: 294.0
Latitude: 36.151208
Longitude: -81.691786 |
| Creator Individual | F.S.W. |
| Tags |
Automobiles
Bulldozers Construction Construction equipment Flat Top Road (N.C.) Overpasses Photographs Road construction Roads Watauga County (N.C.) |
| Credit | Courtesy of the North Carolina State Archives |
