NEW KENT COUNTY, Va. – A road construction project is forcing some New Kent County neighbors to take 12-mile detour just to get groceries.
Folks who live in a rural part of the county off Cosby Mill Road said that VDOT did not give them enough warning about the project to fix a road that frequent floods.
Neighbors were at first excited about the project since the road would get an extensive make over. But once they learned how long the project could take, several folks CBS 6 talked to were upset.
"It never occurred to me it would take six months,” said Charles Brown, who lives near Cosby Mill Road.
Some living in the area are fearful that he six-month construction project could delay fire and EMS crews.
Others are worried about the potential strain on elderly drivers since the detour could potentially add 30 minutes to their drive time.
"To travel some of these back roads just to pick up a few groceries, it's not the easiest thing for them,” said Greg Moczygemba, who is also impacted by the project.
Another concern is how the project was relayed to those living in the area.
Moczygemba said he received “little notification” from VDOT.
However, VDOT maintains that they sent noticed to New Kent officials and said that the project was posted on their website as well as Facebook and Twitter accounts. Additionally, officials said they installed message boards a week before the road was closed.
But that wasn’t enough for Brown.
"I think if anybody had thought that it was gonna take six months, I think there would have been an uproar in the community,” Brown said.
VDOT said that while project is scheduled to take six months, it could be completed much more quickly depending on the weather this winter.
