Update: Butler Road will not close on Thursday. Officials announced late Wednesday afternoon delivery of the bridges for the Ferry Farm – Belmont Trail will take place between 2:30 and 3 a.m. Thursday, not later in the day as was originally scheduled.
Stafford, VA – Butler Road will be closed for a short time period on Thursday, December 29, as two large bridges are delivered to the construction site of Phase 3 of the Belmont-Ferry Farm Trail at St. Clair Brooks Park. The delivery is scheduled for Thursday between 9 a.m. and noon. Butler Road will be closed for a short time period within that time frame.
The bridges will cover two ravines from the YMCA on Butler Road to St. Clair Brooks Park. The bridge closest to the YMCA is the largest at 50 feet long and 15 feet wide. The bridge at St. Clair Brooks Park is 25 feet long and 15 feet wide. Both are constructed of steel and will be covered with a wood decking. They will be supported by concrete abutments.
The trail is part of a bigger trail system that will connect Stafford’s parks and historical resources along the Rappahannock River with those of Fredericksburg to form the “Heritage Loop.” Phase 1 and 2 have already been constructed within John Lee Pratt Memorial Park, and Phase 3 is under construction at St. Clair Brooks Memorial Park. Phase 3 will provide a 10-foot wide asphalt pedestrian and bicycle trail from the western end of the Historic Port of Falmouth Park, across River Road near Shelton’s Cottage, through St. Clair Brooks Park, and connect with the existing Phase 2 trail west of the YMCA along Butler Road. Phase 3 will help meet an identified deficiency for local and regional trails by creating a critical .89 mile link to the 4.02 mile long Belmont to Ferry Farm trail.
Construction of Phase 3 began in August 2011 and is scheduled to be completed in February 2012
