We appreciate your patience as we have waited to make a decision regarding Bridge Day 2020. The Bridge Day Commission is committed to doing our part to protect our communities, staff, volunteers, attendees and fellow Mountaineers. With that in mind, we have decided to cancel this year’s Bridge Day event, which was scheduled for October 17.

We know that this is an enormous disappointment, but this is not a decision that has been taken lightly. Unfortunately, the uncertainty regarding safety around mass gatherings makes the probability of factors outside our control forcing us to cancel the event at the last minute much higher. 

Only a short time ago, we felt optimistic that October was far enough away to confidently proceed with our plans. However, as it stands today, we cannot guarantee the one thing that our vendors and sponsors trust us above all else to deliver – namely, a large-scale, safe, high-quality event. 

We understand the gravity of the situation for our local businesses – venues, restaurants, hoteliers, security, service industry staff, and other partners — that rely so heavily on the increased business that Bridge Day brings before the weather changes. Though it’s true that the 2020 event will no longer take place in the way that we intended, we continue to strive toward our purpose of celebrating the New River Gorge Bridge and surrounding areas, and we hope that you will continue to support our local businesses as well. 

Ultimately, we have tried to make the best decision for the community, and we are so thankful for the support that has already been shown. We will continue to work hard to bring you this unique event that we all love in the future. We intend to keep morale high and, together with community leaders, focus on collective efforts to rebuild a fantastic event in 2021. 

Take care of yourselves. We'll do everything we can to help our communities stay safe, informed and connected. 

Follow us on Facebook for future Bridge Day updates, or sign up for our newsletter here.