Governor Lee And Other Elected Officials Tour I-40 Damage

Governor Bill Lee was in Cocke County on Monday. Lee and other elected officials were touring the area of I-40 that was damaged in the recent flooding. Parts of the eastbound lanes were washed away during the flooding of the Pigeon River on September 27. Eastbound traffic is currently exiting the interstate at exit 440, while westbound traffic can get on the interstate at the Hartford Road exit. Lee says the goal is to get I-40 back open to the North Carolina State line. Traffic for the eastbound lanes will be transferred over to the westbound side, with one lane in each direction. This traffic pattern will start at exit 447 and go to the state line. Governor Lee says the goal is to get the interstate back open by the end of next week.

Of course, I-40 will be closed at the state line as parts of the interstate were washed away in the Pigeon River Gorge. NCDOT says that the interstate will be closed indefinitely from the Tennessee state line to exit 20. With I-26 closed in Unicoi County for the foreseeable future, travel into western North Carolina remains challenging. Newfound Gap Road was reopened by the national park service through the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, supplying a way for traffic to get to North Carolina. However, because of an influx of commercial vehicles trying to use that road, the park service is now closing the road from 10pm to 7:30am each day. Commercial vehicles are prohibited from using US 441 through the national park.