FOR ABOUT TWO MILES---BETWEEN LONG SHOALS ROAD AND THE FRENCH BROAD RIVER
COULD EASE THE BACK-UP IN BUSY PERIODS (LIKE FRIDAY AFTERNOONS!)
The signs went up last week and warn that trucks with three axles or more are not allowed to drive in the left lane on I-26 from just west of the Long Shoals exit to just before the French Broad River.
"The trucks slow down and lose momentum as they go up the hill," Highway Patrol Trooper Mark Corbin said.
The new regulation comes after a 10-month-long study by the Department of Transportation found trucks driving an average of 30-35 mph during peak times.
"When the speed limit is 60, so you’re actually backing up the interstate when it shouldn't be," Corbin said.
Though the change is only for about a two-mile stretch, the road to getting these restrictions has been a long one.
On the first day the signs were put up, troopers issued about 30 citations.
