Royalton's Road Work Is Moving From the Back Roads Into the Village

At the Foxstand Bridge, concrete barriers have closed the 165-foot truss to cars since 2024. Anglers still fish below it. On the far side, roughly 80 households have spent more than two years taking a mostly dirt-road loop to reach Route 14 and I-89, as Vermont Public reported in June.

This fall's closures look different. Each sits on an outlying road, and each has a finish date counted in days or weeks. The bigger change is scheduled for 2027. That year the Foxstand replacement and a sidewalk project along the South Royalton green are both set to be under construction in the same season. For the first time since the bridge closed, the work will be in the center of town.

Two outlying jobs, each with a deadline

Two jobs with tight windows make up Royalton's road work this fall.

1. Oxbow Road. Pike Industries was scheduled to start pavement reclaim and hardpack installation on Monday, November 2, for two to three days. One lane stays open, but the town advises using alternate routes. The town's schedule, last updated October 21, says weather may move the dates.
2. Broad Brook Road. Markowski Excavation closed the road at the landslide near 2510 Broad Brook Road starting September 9, with the repair due no later than November 30. Until it reopens, residents on the south side who are heading north are detoured via Allen Road and Howe Hill Road.

The White River Valley Herald reported the same Broad Brook timeline in early September: work starting September 9 and finishing by the end of November. November 30 is the completion deadline the town announced. It doesn't mean the road reopens that day, so check the town's alert page before you plan a trip through the slide area.

Both jobs are inconvenient. Both are also short. The Foxstand closure is the one with no near end. It has shaped driving on the west side of the river for two years and will keep doing so through at least two more winters.

The Foxstand date has firmed up, and so has the price

The Foxstand plan has been rewritten several times. In 2022 it was on the state's funding shortlist, set to be paid for by a federal grant that ran out before Royalton's turn came. After the state closed the bridge in 2024, a temporary span was promised. Then its price tripled, according to Vermont Public.

On August 13, 2025, the Royalton Selectboard voted 3-2 to skip the temporary bridge and go straight to a permanent one. The town's notice gave two reasons. The temporary bridge would have added an estimated $787,048 to the town's share, and it would not have been ready until fall 2026. Fall 2026 is now. Under the plan the board turned down, a temporary crossing would be opening about this time.

The board kept its decision this year. At the August 25 Selectboard meeting, VTrans project manager Jonathan Griffin said funding was in place and the historical review was still to come. The board approved the plans as presented, the Herald reported.

The new bridge will be bigger than the old one, according to the Herald's account:

• Span: 220 feet, so the river channel under it will be wider than before
• Roadbed: four and a half feet higher over the river
• Approaches: pushed out on both ends to make up for the extra height
• Estimated construction cost: $11.6 million

The cost has moved more than the schedule. Under the state program Royalton uses, the town pays 5% of the project.

In about a year, the town's share went up by roughly two-thirds while the finish date stayed in late 2028. Griffin told Vermont Public that the first estimate was a "back-of-the-napkin" number that was never meant to cover the full project. He added that construction costs have risen across the board.

The VTrans fact sheet lists the steps before any crew arrives. Preliminary plans were done June 16, 2026. Permitting and right-of-way clearance are set for spring 2027, bid advertising for spring 2027, and contract award for summer 2027. Town Administrator Ryan Britch has said he is confident in the 2028 date. In the same Vermont Public story, he said this:

"So I'm feeling very confident that that will be the official opening date."

The detour is the road to watch this winter

Back River Road has carried the Foxstand detour since 2024. When the town announced the permanent-bridge decision, it said it was working on safety and mud-season conditions on Back River Road and other detour routes. It also said the town road crew would put maintenance and snow removal on the detour route first for as long as the bridge stays closed. That pledge lasts until the new bridge opens, which covers this winter and next.

The town also named Nell Gwin as community liaison for residents affected by the closure, through the end of the project. She can be reached at [email protected]. The town keeps a Foxstand FAQ, and Ryan Britch takes questions at 802-763-7967.

Then the work comes to Chelsea Street

Most residents rarely drive the Foxstand detour. Chelsea Street is different. It is South Royalton's main street, the road past the green, the Market and the storefronts, and two separate projects are planned for it.

The first is VTrans project 20F330, about 800 feet of new sidewalks and ADA improvements by the town green. Its fact sheet lists right-of-way clearance on August 5, 2026, bidding and award in winter 2027, and a construction window of spring through fall 2027.

The second is the town's own job, milling and resurfacing about 575 feet of Chelsea Street over Town-owned Bridge #3. It was in the town's paving request for proposals, with bids due July 23, 2026 and Selectboard review on July 28. The RFP requires the contractor to keep driveways open and provide traffic control. The town has not posted a start date or a detour for this job. It and the sidewalk project are separate, with separate schedules.

Put the two state calendars side by side and they overlap. The Foxstand is set for contract award in summer 2027, and the Chelsea Street sidewalks are set for construction from spring to fall 2027. Barring changes, 2027 is the season when both of Royalton's best-known crossings, the river bridge west of the village and the main street along the green, have crews on them.

Work is already going on near the town office, too. The Herald's account of the August 25 meeting mentions a rescue building project underway next to the town office building. The board approved its connection to the town well, with one abstention.

How the bridge gets paid for comes back in March

The Foxstand's higher cost has brought back an older question. Royalton has been considering a local option tax to help cover its share of the bridge, and Vermont Public reported that residents will likely vote on it at town meeting next March. Royalton voters turned down a 1% local option tax in 2025. The town held a local option tax listening session in May. If the tax reaches the ballot, a closure that has mostly affected about 80 households west of the river will go to every Royalton voter.

Road work like this can change how a house feels day to day, from how long the drive takes to how much traffic goes past the door. If you're thinking about what the Foxstand timeline or the Chelsea Street work means for a home you own in Royalton, Sandy Reavill and the VTNH Realty team can help you look at it street by street. Request a free home valuation and we'll show you where your property sits in the town's next two construction seasons.