CONTRACTORS CUT THROUGH MOUNTAINS FOR NEW INTERSTATE

Contractors are building a four-lane route through some of the most rugged terrain in North Carolina, hoping to complete by 2002 the final 11 mi (18 km) of the rebuilding of U.S. 23 into Interstate-26 from Johnson City, Tennessee, to Asheville, North Carolina. The project involves building four bridges and laying 60,000 ft (18,288 m) of pipe and 15,000 ft (4,572 m) of 60-in (152-cm) structural pipe plate to support 300-ft-high (91-m) fill heights. Erosion control is also a major concern.