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Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park Tour Roads
Georgia and Tennessee
MISSION 66
In response to growing concerns about poor conditions in national parks across the country, the National Park Service developed Mission 66, a ten-year program designed to address the needs of the parks by upgrading facilities, repairing roads, expanding interpretive programs, and improving staffing and management. The primary manifestation of Mission 66 at Chickamauga and Chatta.nooga was the beginning of efforts to relocate US High.way 27 outside of the park. Large amounts of commercial traffic through the park had been a long-time concern. However, the relocation project did not become a top priority until park officials were faced with a local move.ment to widen the highway from two lanes to four to accommodate even higher volumes of traffic.
In 1964 a plan was developed that would reroute US 27 to a bypass looping around the west side of the park and reconnecting with its original route beyond the borders of the park. It was proposed that the section of the route that remained in the park would be restored to its 1863 appearance. The National Park Service planned to finance a majority of the project, if approval was granted by Georgia Highway officials. By 1967, it seemed that the US Highway 27 relocation would soon be a reality. The proposed project foundered, however. As late as 1980, the long-running proposal was still being tabled by park administrators due to insufficient funds. Finally in the mid-1990s, the proposed rerouting of the highway was budgeted by the Georgia Highway Department. The bypass would add six new miles of highway around the park and divert daily commuters and commercial traffic around the area. Ground was broken on the project in 1994, with an expected completion date in 1999.
LaFayette Road (US Highway 27) carries increasing suburban commuter traffic. The relocation of US 27 outside the park will restore the road as a tourist route for leisurely driving. (FHWA) |
| Introduction | Acadia | Blue Ridge Parkway | Chickamauga and Chattanooga | Colonial Parkway | Generals Highway | George Washington Memorial Parkway | Great Smoky Mountains | Mount Rainier | Rock Creek and Potomac Parkway | Shenandoah's Skyline Drive | Southwest Circle Tour | Vicksburg | Yellowstone | Yosemite |
