US Transportation Secretary Gets Update On I-40

The new US Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy was in Cocke County on Monday. Duffy was on hand to get a first hand update on I-40 in Tennessee and North Carolina. Parts of the interstate were washed away in Tennessee and North Carolina by the flooding caused by Helene last September. Secretary Duffy stated that rebuilding I-40 will be “the most expensive emergency relief project that we have ever had in the country”. Duffy pointed out the challenges that rebuilding the interstate brings due to the terrain of a river on one side and mountain on the other. Duffy went on to say that it is important to get the interstate rebuilt, but it needs to be done at a reasonable price. He credited Tennessee Senator Bill Haggerty with keeping the federal government informed as to what will be needed to reopen I-40.

Also on Monday during the secretary’s visit, the state of North Carolina announced that I-40 will reopen as a two lane highway using the westbound lanes. That is now expected to happen on March 1. The speed limit going through that affected part of the interstate will be 40 miles per hour.