The Secret To Parking On Bridge Day

Bridge Day is filled with cool stuff.  It's like a New River Gorge Showcase in a day.  Plus parachutes. But for everything that goes on that day (this year, Saturday October 17th), there's one thing that people want to know more than anything else:  "Where do I park?"

Hey, it's a fair question.  If you're going to be attending West Virginia's biggest festival, it's an important piece of the puzzle.

So, here's the secret to everything you need to know about parking on Bridge Day:  Planning.

With just a bit of advance planning, you can easily be at the event and out on the bridge with no trouble at all.

Let's start with some logistics.  During Bridge Day itself, the bridge is closed to traffic.  From 7 A.M. to 5 P.M., only pedestrians, emergency vehichles, and the occasional rafting bus can cross the bridge.

That means you'll have to drive around the bridge if you want to go by car to the opposite side.  And here's the route: From Fayetteville, it's Rt 16 west to Chimney Corner, then Rt 60 east through Ansted to Rt 19.  If you're coming from the north, just reverse that:  60 west through Ansted to Chimney Corner, then 16 east to Fayetteville.

For the VAST majority of people, it's easier just to park on one side of the bridge and stay there.  Then if you want to cross, you just walk across.  That's part of what bridge day is all about anyway, right.

There is no parking right at the bridge.  Never has been, never will be- (except for handicap parking, which is plentiful on both sides).  Lucky for us, there are shuttle buses running on both sides of the bridge.  Here's a rundown of where the shuttle stops are (all parking places are just off U.S. 19):

ON THE NORTH SIDE:

1.  Millroy Gross Rd, at the New River Campground

2.  Smales Branch Rd, in front of the Lighthouse Worship Center

3.  There's some parking, but no shuttle stop, along Ames Heights Rd and Lansing Rd.  These leave you with about a 1/4 to 1/2 mile walk to the bridge.  Get there early for a space- otherwise, hit one of the shuttle stop parking areas.

ON THE SOUTH SIDE:

1.  Kroger/K-mart in Oak Hill

2.  Wal-Mart in Fayetteville

3.  Fayetteville High School

4.  Fayetteville Court House

The buses will all take you right up to the bridge.  When you're finished, you can take a bus right back to where you started from.  Easy, peasy, mac-n-cheesy.

There's an in depth chart and description right here, and you can download and print a map of all the shuttle stops.

And, if there's anything we can do to help you plan a little more, just give us a call:  800-927-0263