The state is making progress on rebuilding Interstate 40 near the Pigeon River Gorge in western North Carolina, where it was flooded by Hurricane Helene.
The speed limit through the Pigeon River Gorge is only 35 mph as 300 workers try to repair the highway.
Patti Henline travels it often and has advice for Memorial Day drivers.
[ 2025 ARTICLE: I-40 reconstruction efforts continue one year after Hurricane Helene ]
“Leave about 6 or 7 in the morning,” said driver Patti Henline. “Then you don’t hit the heavy traffic during the daytime and get stuck in a traffic jam.”
Officials with the North Carolina Department of Transportation said they are saving money by moving rock across the nearby Pigeon River from the National Forest, grinding it up on site, and turning it into concrete. Slabs of concrete are then poured into building walls up the mountainside below Interstate 40. Engineers say the walls and rocks placed above are made to withstand another major rain event.
“The intent of our design is to withstand a similar event such as Helene,” said Blake Soblesky, resident engineer with NCDOT. “We’ve put an extensive amount of time into using hydraulics and hydraulic analysis to figure out what we think will be a large event similar to Helene.”
Engineers estimate that only 15% of the $2 billion project is completed. They are working 24/7 and expect as many as 500 people to be on site this summer.
Driver Al Marks hopes everyone traveling in the areas stays safe over the holiday weekend.
“You got to keep your eyes alert, and stay a couple car lengths behind the other cars, and they should be fine,” Marks said.
The project is expected to be completed by late 2028.
A new federal grant could put a Rock Hill pedestrian bridge back on track.
In 2024, the city wanted the bridge to be a downtown centerpiece, but funding got pulled.
The bridge was just approved for $1.5 million in grants, our partners at the Rock Hill Herald reported.
The first grant in 2024 was for more than $10 million.