The Sound of Silence: DOT is mum on reason for work stoppage

There’s not been another word from the North Carolina Department of Transportation about the reason for abruptly stopping construction at the Pea Island bridge Wednesday morning.

We promised our readers more information when we posted a cryptic, three-paragraph media release from DOT Wednesday.  However, there’s been nary a whisper from anyone.

Usually, a reporter can call those who probably or surely know more and get a little background or off-the-record information — maybe some hints or speculation or nudges in the right direction.

But here, there is nothing.  No one at any level in DOT is saying anything, and local officials claim they don’t know a thing.  Furthermore, some say they can’t even imagine a reasonable scenario that would prompt DOT to make this move.

It’s clear that, as one person noted, “there’s a lot going on.” And it obviously has something to do with the unrelenting legal battle that environmental groups are waging to stop the Bonner Bridge replacement and all related projects on Pea Island.

Here’s what we know so far:

• NCDOT awarded the contract last November to Parsons Construction Group, Inc., to build a 2.1-mile permanent bridge over the inlet cut by Hurricane Irene on Pea Island National Wildlife Refuge.  The contract is for $79.7 million.
• Work began last February, and the estimated completion date is spring of 2016.
• Traffic is being detoured onto a temporary roadway during construction.
• DOT issued a suspension order to Parsons to stop work on the project effective close of business on Tuesday, Sept. 9. Parsons can file claims for losses incurred while the project is suspended.
• According to DOT, Parsons has about 32 employees on the site. Approximately 18 are craft workers. The remainder are supervisory, engineering, office, and safety workers. NCDOT has eight inspectors on the project.
• DOT said in its brief news release on Wednesday, Sept. 10, that no disruption to traffic is expected.  Drivers will continue to use the detour.
• In the news release, DOT said that the decision to stop work “was made jointly with the Federal Highway Administration to allow NCDOT and FHWA to continue to review the U.S. Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals? recent ruling regarding the Bonner Bridge replacement project.”
• DOT noted that in the Aug. 6 opinion, “the court asked District Court Judge Louise Flanagan to review her decision that FWHA?s Section 4(f) evaluation was completed properly. Section 4(f) is a federal law that governs the evaluation of transportation projects in a wildlife refuge.”
• That Aug. 6 decision has not been remanded — or sent back — to Flanagan yet.  All parties to the lawsuit have 45 days — about the end of next week —  in which to appeal the unanimous decision by a three-judge panel of the Appeals Court.  They can appeal to have the three judges reconsider, to ask that the full court hear the case, or they can appeal to the U.S. Supreme Court, which is extremely unlikely to take it.
• If no parties to the lawsuit appeal, the case is sent back to Flanagan for reconsideration on the 53rd day after the ruling, which would make it near the end of the month.

So, the bridge work has been stopped for lawyers to discuss the opinion, and DOT says it can’t comment further because of the ongoing litigation.

The abruptness of the decision raises many questions — with no answers that seem to make any sense based on what we — members of the public — now know.

Why has DOT decided now to stop the project — five weeks after the decision by the Appeals Court?  They’ve been combing over it for all this time, so what prompted the sudden action now?

The decision actually favored the DOT position on the replacement plan in many important ways.  

The Appeals Court ruled that DOT’s plan had met all the environmental requirements and that it did not illegally segment the project into the bridge and itself with hotspots on Highway 12 addressed as they arise.

Furthermore, the opinion did not exactly say that DOT had not properly completed the Section 4(f) evaluation, although it did remand that part to Flanagan and strongly instructed her to re-examine it.

Until Wednesday, DOT was publicly nothing but optimistic about its chances to prevail in the legal wrangling.

Are there discussions or negotiations or some kind of communications going on between the agencies and the environmental groups? Or even with the judge?

Have the environmental groups threatened to go to court and get an injunction on some grounds to stop all work on the refuge until the legal matter is settled?

An attorney for the Southern Environmental Law Center told a Coastland Times reporter on Wednesday that “As always, we continue to be willing to work with the agencies on a long-term solution for the project.”

But what kind of a compromise or solution would DOT possibly be willing to accept at this point?  It seems that it’s either the long bridge or the short bridge. It is difficult to imagine a compromise here. And I can’t believe that, at this point, DOT is going to throw in the towel and agree to a long bridge when there’s no money for it.

And is the reluctance of DOT to announce which of two options it prefers to bridge the overwash areas at the S-curves and north Rodanthe related to the court ruling and/or the decision to stop work on the Pea Island bridge?  

DOT had public hearings on the options in January and said it would announce its choice in “late summer.” This is getting to be really late summer.

It’s clear that DOT isn’t going to tell us anything and is making sure that there are no leaks.

Most reasonable people can understand that if there are some delicate negotiations underway, it would not be productive to make all of the details public.

On the other hand, DOT owes the public a better explanation for this work stoppage and how long it might continue.

On the face of it, it wouldn’t seem like a good thing.  It’s easy to see why it has raised anxiety levels of islanders who are desperate for a new bridge and a reliable highway.

DOT officials are asking us to just trust them.

So far in this long journey to get the decrepit Bonner Bridge replaced, DOT has given us no reason not to trust them and has made great efforts to communicate with the public on bridge and Highway 12 issues. The new Facebook page is a good example.

But in the face of this sudden and puzzling work stoppage, the North Carolina Department of Transportation owes the public a better explanation. We are, after all, not only paying for the projects but our lives and livelihoods depend on replacing the Bonner Bridge and keeping Highway 12 open.

It would not be good to find out that outside environmental groups have had a seat at the table to negotiate our future and that we, the folks who will have to live with it, have not.

FOR MORE INFORMATION

Click here to read the editor’s blog on the Aug. 6 ruling by the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals.