BY CLARA VAUGHN, Eastern Shore Post —
Construction is underway on Cemetery Road and Lee Street in and around Belle Haven.
The project has been decades in the making and will improve the turtleback road while adding paved, 4-foot-wide shoulders to the Lee Street section in Accomack County.
Crews began work this week and construction should finish in spring of 2025, said Virginia Department of Transportation Senior Communications Specialist Tim Kelley.
“The construction work is definitely a welcomed sight,” said Accomack Supervisor Reneta Major.
“It just means only good things for Belle Haven and Occohannock Neck,” said Northampton Supervisor Betsy Mapp.
The Route 602 project spans both counties on Virginia’s Eastern Shore and improving the road has long been a priority for local elected leaders.
Accomack County applied for its portion of the project during VDOT’s fiscal year 2018 SMART SCALE cycle — which is one way that projects are added to VDOT’s list of Six-Year Improvement Plan projects.
With Northampton County’s portion of Cemetery Road funded by a mix of federal, state, and county funds, VDOT combined work on the road into one project, Kelley said.
In Northampton County, improvements will be along 1.2 miles of Cemetery Road, from its intersection with Occohannock Neck Road to the Accomack County line. The project will restore pavement and flatten the road, Kelley said.
Accomack County’s section is just over a half-mile long, from the Northampton County line to Lee Street’s intersection with Belle Haven Road, and will restore pavement while addressing width, curvature, and drainage deficiencies, as well as adding paved 4-foot-wide shoulders, he said.
“This project is designed to extend the life of the road, and removal of the ‘turtleback’ cross slopes will improve driving conditions for motorists,” he said.
“The paved shoulders on the Belle Haven portion will accommodate pedestrians and bicyclists, as well as make the roadway safer for motorists,” said Kelley.
The $7.4 million project includes work from preliminary engineering to right-of-way, utilities, and construction, he said. VDOT awarded Branscome, Inc., $5.5 million in October for construction, Kelley said.
Drivers can expect lane closures with flaggers present throughout construction.
As early as January, the road will close during major construction phases and drivers will be rerouted to U.S. Route 13, Kelley said. There will be message boards to update drivers on the road’s status and any detours, he said.
Access to private property and the two cemeteries along the route will not be impacted, Kelley said.
VDOT has several other major transportation projects coming up on the Eastern Shore, including the Eastern Shore Rail to Trail, which will build a bike and hike path between Nassawadox and Onley along the former railroad corridor and parallel to Stone Road in Cape Charles; improvements to the Daugherty Road-U.S. Route 13 intersection near Tasley; and replacing Shields Bridge Road over Occohannock Creek, Kelley said.
All of these projects are in the design phase or design will start soon, he said.
Visit www.virginiadot.org/travel/511.asp or dial 511 for traffic information from the Virginia Department of Transportation.
A Virginia Department of Transportation employee posts a sign warning of road work on Cemetery Road.
