The North Carolina Department of Transportation began emergency ferry service between Stumpy Point and Rodanthe on Sept. 27 after a nor’easter damaged N.C. 12, closing the highway between the Basnight Bridge and Rodanthe.
Three ferries are operating around the clock to move residents, essential personnel, goods and services between Hatteras Island and the mainland. Each one-way trip takes about two hours. NCDOT said crews have assessed the highway damage and will begin building a temporary road when conditions allow.
It is the first time the emergency route has operated since December 2013, when scour around the former Bonner Bridge forced a 10-day closure. Ferries maintained the island’s connection to the mainland during that closure.
Dare County’s emergency declaration limits boarding on ferries bound for Rodanthe to essential personnel, critical business vendors and permanent Hatteras Island residents. Visitors are barred from those departures. Ferries leaving Rodanthe load on a first-come, first-served basis, with priority for vendors returning from deliveries. NCDOT warned that limited space could mean long lines and significant delays.
The Stumpy Point terminal is at 100 Log Storage Road, and the Rodanthe terminal is at 23170 Myrna Peters Road.
N.C. 12 also remained closed on the north end of Ocracoke because of ocean overwash in NCDOT’s Sept. 27 update. The Hatteras-Ocracoke ferry route was suspended pending the road’s reopening, while ferries continued to connect Ocracoke Village with Cedar Island and Swan Quarter.
