N.C. DOT Restarts Storm-Halted Work

摘要

Budget management measures, a funding infusion and a calm winter so far have helped the North Carolina Dept. of Transportation stabilize its hurricane-pummeled finances, allowing preliminary engineering work to resume on hundreds of stalled road and bridge projects. Cleanup and repair work after Hurricane Florence and other major 2018 weather events totaled more than $300 million, says the agency, yet federal reimbursement for eligible costs has been slow. With its budget further strained by rising material prices and millions diverted to settle lawsuits stemming from a 30-year old land ownership law, NCDOT halted some 900 projects last August, just before Hurricane Dorian raked the Outer Banks, severely damaging parts of the barrier islands' major roadway that added $13 million more in recovery costs.