DOT nominee Duffy vows to prioritize rebuilding I-40

WASHINGTON — A top action item on transportation secretary nominee Sean Duffy’s to-do list – if confirmed – is to visit storm-ravaged I-40 in Tennessee and North Carolina and prioritize rebuilding it.

“We need to know that this is going to be front and center with you so that we can get that interstate rebuilt and reopened,” U.S. Sen. Marsha Blackburn, R-Tenn., told Duffy at his confirmation hearing Wednesday.

“If I’m confirmed, the first trip I would like to make is … to see the devastation and destruction and the need to rebuild your states,” Duffy told Blackburn.

Duffy, a former U.S. congressman and Fox News host, was nominated to head the U.S. Department of Transportation by President-elect Donald Trump in November.

Sen. Ted Budd, R-N.C., told Duffy that 25 counties in western North Carolina suffered road damage from Hurricane Helene.

“The big problem right now seems to be delays,” Budd said, asking Duffy how he plans to speed the rebuilding process.

“I think it’s going to take time to streamline the process, but this is an emergency,” Duffy responded. “I’ll commit to you that I’ll do everything in the power of the department to move the process forward as quickly as possible.”

DOT last week released $320 million in emergency funds to repair I-40 and I-26 in North Carolina and Tennessee, which are vital truck routes for the region.

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