Polk County US-64 Rockslide Update for March 12
Friday, March 12, 2010 | 05:36am
24 Hour Schedule Continues
CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. – Crews continued working a 24 hour schedule with hand and mechanical scaling, drilling, and blasting proceeding on the eastern side of the main slide area and along the river bank during daylight hours and rock bolting operations taking place on the western slope during night time hours. This schedule is expected to continue through the weekend and into next week as weather permits. Night time rock bolting operations are expected to shift to a 24 hour, 7 day a week schedule as soon as the slope blasting and scaling operations are completed.
Crews also are breaking up rock along the boat ramp, loading the debris into trucks and hauling the material off site. Upon completion of the cleanup, the contractor will make repairs to the portions of the concrete boat ramp that were damaged as a result of the rock slide.
US-64 in Polk County is closed at mile marker 17.6 due to a major rockslide near the Ocoee 2 Dam. A portion of Little Frog Mountain slid into the roadway on November 10, 2009. The roadway is scheduled to reopen to traffic on March 31, 2010.
Motorists traveling to the area from Chattanooga or Cleveland should take I-75 North to Exit 60 (SR-68, Sweetwater) and follow SR-68 South through Monroe County and into Ducktown in Polk County. Those traveling from North Carolina are advised to take US-74 to SR-68 North at Ducktown through Polk County then onto I-75 at Sweetwater in Monroe County.
Motorists may also utilize a route through northern Georgia to travel around the rockslide area. From Copperhill/McCaysville at the Georgia State Line take Georgia Route 5 to U.S. Highway 76 to U.S. Highway 411 north to the Tennessee state line and on into Cleveland.
TDOT is providing a live look at the work underway to clear the rockslide via a time-lapse camera accessible by logging onto TDOT’s US-64 Rockslide web page (http://bit.ly/1Tlc8m) where you can also sign up to receive the weekly US-64 Rockslide newsletter.
For more information on TDOT road construction projects visit the TDOT SmartWay web site at http://www.tn.gov/tdot/tdotsmartway/. Travelers may also dial “511” for travel information or follow TDOT on Twitter. For statewide traffic updates follow TN511 or for the Chattanooga area, including updates on the US64 rockslide, follow Chattanooga511.
Motorists are reminded to use all motorist information tools responsibly. Drivers should refrain from texting, tweeting or using a mobile phone while operating a vehicle. TDOT advises drivers to “Know before you go!” by checking traffic conditions before leaving for your destination.
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