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Tennessee officials say they'll be able to reopen the westbound lanes of Interstate 40 a week earlier than originally thought, vowing to have debris from a rockslide cleared by Monday.
A rockslide Monday blocked the westbound lanes a short distance west of the Tennessee-North Carolina border. One boulder was described as the size of a house, and Tennessee Department of Transportation officials originally said it would be around Feb. 14 before the interstate highway would be open again.
But officials have awarded an emergency contract to a Knoxville-based company, which says it can clear the debris and unstable rock much quicker. I-40 currently is closed westbound at Exit 20 in North Carolina.
The N.C. Department of Transportation is reminding residents that western N.C. tourist destinations such as Asheville, Cherokee, Waynesville, Maggie Valley and the Smoky Mountains remain accessible via I-40. But westbound traffic headed for Tennessee must detour I-40 in Asheville, using I-240, I-26, and I-81 back to I-40.
A rockslide on I-40 on the North Carolina side of the border in 2009 and 2010 closed I-40 for six months.
