Preserving a Historic National Park Roadway

Abstract

The Hermit Road is a historic roadway in Grand Canyon National Park, Arizona. It was first constructed in 1912 by the Santa Fe Railroad and improved from 1934 to 1935 by the Bureau of Public Roads and the National Park Service. An 8-mi scenic roadway along the south rim of the Grand Canyon, the Hermit Road offers several overlooks and parking areas that give the visitor breathtaking views of one of the seven natural wonders of the world. The original design of this roadway reflects many features of context-sensitive design. Historic features of the roadway include stone masonry walls at overlooks and pullouts, weep holes in masonry walls, and stone culvert headwalls. After seven decades, the Hermit Road was showing its age. The National Park Service faced the challenge of how to retain a high level of historic integrity while also rehabilitating and improving the Hermit Road. The pavement surface was in poor repair; some of the road and overlook historic features were endangered. The narrow road, 18 to 20 ft wide, presented a safety concern. Improvements constructed in 2008 included widening and resurfacing; the enhancement of existing overlooks, parking areas, and trails; and the addition of a pedestrian and bicycle trail on a separate alignment. These improvements were accomplished with minimal impact on historic and natural resources. This paper describes the environmental compliance process, roadway design issues, and how historic integrity was generally retained in the roadway design. The perspectives of historic preservation, environmental protection, resource conservation, and roadway design are presented.