By DEREK HODGES

Staff Writer

PIGEON FORGE — Just more than two months after a rockslide blocked both southbound lanes of the Spur just past the Pigeon Forge city limits, traffic is flowing freely through the area again – at least for now.

Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) officials announced Tuesday the road has been cleared and was opened completely Friday, though that will only last through the beginning of next week, with the second phase of the project likely to force occasional one-lane closures.

The move was made possible because the work now is being done off-site as crews from Charles Blalock & Sons Construction cast concrete panels that will be used to cover the wooden retaining wall that has been put up at the site. At the request of the National Park Service, which manages most of the road’s length between Gatlinburg and Pigeon Forge, TDOT agreed to put faux stone over the structure.

The Blalock workers are pouring wet cement into metal molds that will create panels that have the appearance of stone masonry. Those will be finished with a stain to make them appear more realistic, TDOT spokeswoman Yvette Martinez said.

Having completed the first phase of the work, which called for the removal of slide debris and stabilization of the hillside, workers must now wait for the panels to cure before they can do anything further. That will likely take until Thursday and, with a forecast for extended rain showers and a contract stipulation that all lanes remain open during the weekends, the decision was made to open the lanes for now and start the next phase on Monday, Martinez said.

“TDOT estimates crews will begin to install the rock façade during the week of March 15,” she said. “At that time one southbound lane will close to allow crews to safely work on phase two of the rockslide repairs.”

That second portion of the effort also calls for repaving and re-striping work on both sides of the highway to repair any damage done by the heavy machinery used in the project on the southbound side or the demands of handling all detour traffic on the northbound lanes.

Blalock, operating on an emergency contract, completed the first phase of the work almost two weeks ahead of schedule, meaning it will get the total early completion bonus of $50,000.

“Phase two is also currently ahead of schedule for completion,” Martinez said. “The entire emergency project is scheduled to be finished on or before April 30, 2010.”

That date is the one set forward in the contract. So far, officials overseeing the project have been reluctant to offer a new projected completion date, concerned March’s tendency to “come in like a lion” could push the effort back a bit.

“We want to be careful about giving people an end date and then not being able to meet that date,” Martinez said. “It’s looking good now, though. Currently the contractor is ahead of schedule.”

dhodges@themountainpress.com