Section of I-40 to reopen Monday

Westbound Interstate 40 near Tennessee will reopen more than a week earlier than expected after a rockslide in Tennessee closed the road Tuesday.

The westbound lanes, now closed at exit 20 near Cove Creek, N.C., should reopen Monday, according to the N.C. Department of Transportation. Eastbound lanes were unaffected by the slide.

The Tennessee Department of Transportation had expected the road to remain closed until Feb. 14. But on Thursday, the department announced that it had hired a contractor to stabilize the area and it expected to reopen the road by Monday, weather permitting.

The NCDOT recommends that motorists traveling west toward Tennessee take I-240 West in Asheville to I-26 West, then follow I-26 West to I-81 South in Tennessee back to I-40. The detour route is 53 miles longer and adds 45 minutes to an hour driving time.

I-40 follows the Pigeon River Gorge for several miles as it crosses the state border, and gorge walls are prone to rock slides. A slide on the North Carolina side in October 2009 closed the interstate in both directions for six months.