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I was thinking about a road trip to Asheville for the Christmas holiday, but after looking at Mapquest's warning about the closure of a big chunk of I-40 between Knoxville and Asheville, I'm wondering how hard it is to drive from Knoxville to Asheville now with the road closure that was due to rock slides. I would be coming from Michigan straight down I-75 to Knoxville and then looking at the best way to drive to Asheville from Knoxville. Are the alternate roads 4 lanes?
Mapquest is giving directions from Knoxville to Asheville as 11E to I-70/280 and then 25 to 26. Those all look like smaller roads. I-26 looks like a big freeway, which might be better. What are the locals using?
Mapquest is giving directions from Knoxville to Asheville as 11E to I-70/280 and then 25 to 26. Those all look like smaller roads. I-26 looks like a big freeway, which might be better. What are the locals using?
We take 25/70 from I40 in Knoxville - it's about 2 1/2 hours to Asheville from Knoxville on that route - the road is good although I wouldn't want to drive it in the snow!
Hwy 25/70 via exit 435 from I-40 Newport,tn is a very good alternate...only 30 mins longer and puts you right back on I-40 into asheville. Do not take I-81 to I-26...this detour is very long and time consuming with all the trucks using it. By the way I stopped at this brand new Holiday Inn Express in newport just opened in July 09 to spend a night and it was well worth the stop...very nice hotel and staff is excellent.
DOT just announced that it is again going to take longer to clean up and stabilize, thus the new projected open date is the end of March 2010.
A co-worker of the wife, that lives in Marshall said the extra traffic on the detour, plus the locals abandoning the interstate for the old roads has increased her commute by an hour, each way, for a 25 mile commute.
Businesses west of Asheville are bleeding $$$, and by the end of March many will fail. I'm sure the same is true on the Tennessee side of the slide. The price paid for the corrupt politicians of the 60's that chose the route based on who profited vs. the best route for everyone.
When did the rockslide actually happen? I know it's a big job but it shouldn't take that long. There has to be some underlying monetary issues hindering the urgency of the the clean up process. The drive down that way from Ohio at night is already boring enough, but taking 81 makes it even more mundane due to the lack of steep grades and curves that forces you to remain alert.
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