Over 40 old rail cars are now being installed as bridges to reconnect roads damaged during the September storm.
BURKE COUNTY, N.C. — An innovative solution is being used to bridge literal gaps left behind by Helene in western North Carolina.
Over 40 flatbed railroad cars are being used as temporary bridges in places where roadways were cut off by the September storm, according to the North Carolina Department of Transportation.
In a video posted to the social media platform X, the NCDOT said they and rail partners were using the old rail cars to rebuild bridges “safely and efficiently.”
The cars, which have had their wheels and couplers removed, are essentially long, flat pieces of metal. The video shows asphalt and guardrails were affixed to one such temporary bridge in Burke County.
Engineers intended to use these temporary bridges until all bridges can be fully repaired in the years ahead, according to the NCDOT.
In total, the NCDOT has documented 1,526 total incidents related to storm damage along roadways and bridges. In the nearly six months since the storm, 1,306 out of 1,454 closures have reopened. Most notably, Interstate 40 was reopened for the first time between North Carolina and Tennessee on March 1.
Across roadways big and small, 149 roads remain closed, according to the NCDOT. Another 72 have had partial access restored. Truck drivers will face 53 road closures.
