UNICOI COUNTY, Tenn. (WJHL) — Hurricane Helene damaged 49 state routes across Northeast Tennessee, but by the end of the year, 42 of those routes should be reopened.
Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) Regional Communications Officer Mark Nagi told News Channel 11 that 421 in Johnson County should be open by the end of the year, but there is still a lot of work that needs to be done.
“State Route 81 in Washington County and State Route 107 in Greene County, those are two bridges that were washed away during Helene,” said Nagi. “Work is underway to build those bridges back up. That contract is actually our first progressive design-build project , which was a contract which allowed us to get moving on these projects really quickly.”
TDOT awards contract for bridge repairs along Nolichucky, targets August 2025 completion
Nagi said those bridges are expected to be complete by the summer of 2025, weather permitting. Road work is still ongoing on I-26 in Erwin, but one lane of traffic is open in both directions as a temporary fix…