The Great Smoky Mountains National Park, which manages the Foothills Parkway, celebrated the bridging of this “missing link” last week, the culmination of a project that began with the launch of the section’s construction in 1966. Most of the roadway was complete by 1989, but the project then came to a halt due to slope failures and erosion during construction of the last 1.65 miles, known as the missing link. Over the last seven years, Charlotte-based Lane Construction Company has worked to complete the section with a series of five bridges at a cost of $48.5 million.

Since 1966, $178 million has been invested in this 16-mile section of the Foothills Parkway spanning parts of Blount and Sevier counties.