O&W Road reopens after bridge replacement
The Scott County Road Department reopened O&W Road into the Big South Fork National River & Recreation Area this week
ONEIDA | The O&W Road into the Big South Fork National River & Recreation Area has reopened for vehicular traffic after being closed for the better part of two years.
The Scott County Road Department reopened the road earlier this week, following the completion of a bridge replacement project over Pine Creek. The road had been closed at the Toomey Road intersection, just outside the Big South Fork NRRA, since the TN Dept. of Transportation condemned the bridge in Fall 2024.
The bridge, originally constructed in 1914 as part of the Oneida & Western Railroad, was removed and rebuilt by Cookeville-based King General Contracting, which won the contract with Scott County. The same company is also rebuilding the railroad overpass on Niggs Creek Road at High Point.
Construction of the bridge began in August 2025.
The bridge was one of three original bridges from the O&W Railroad days remaining on the rail bed, which has been a county road for decades. The two remaining include another bridge over Pine Creek inside the Big South Fork NRRA, and a bridge over the Big South Fork River. The latter has been placed on the National Register of Historic Places and will eventually be closed to vehicular traffic once the state deems it unsafe for travel.