The US Department of Transportation announced on October 19 that more than $1.6 billion (yaani about 160 crore US dollars) in emergency relief funding is being made available to accelerate repairs to roads, bridges and other transport infrastructure damaged by natural disasters, covering 34 states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the US Virgin Islands, Guam and the Northern Mariana Islands.

Source: US Department of Transportation

North Carolina receives the largest single share, $873 million (yaani about 87 crore dollars), for continued repairs after Hurricane Helene tore through the western part of the state in September 2024, leaving more than 9,000 damage sites and more than 1,400 road closures, according to the department. Among the hardest-hit routes was Interstate 40 through the Pigeon River Gorge near the Tennessee line, a major freight and travel corridor where floodwaters washed away sections of the highway; the state transport department is rebuilding it with a goal of restoring four lanes through the gorge by 2029, Asheville-area outlet 828 News NOW reported.

Source: 828 News NOW, Asheville

$1.6B+Total emergency relief, 34 states + territories
$873MNorth Carolina share — the largest
9,000+Helene damage sites in North Carolina
1,400+Road closures caused by Helene

"USDOT is working diligently to deliver dollars needed to rebuild critical transportation and infrastructure links across American communities impacted by catastrophic natural disasters," Transportation Secretary Sean P. Duffy said, adding that safe roads and bridges mean rescue services arrive faster and families can get the resources they need to recover.

Other named allocations include $81 million (yaani about 8 crore dollars) for Hawaii, to repair damage from a series of Kona Low storms in March 2026 that brought severe flooding, and $52 million (yaani about 5 crore dollars) for Texas, where heavy rainfall and flooding washed out multiple bridges, including the FM 1431 bridge connecting Lago Vista and Marble Falls, Transport Topics reported.

Source: Transport Topics

The money comes from the Federal Highway Administration's Emergency Relief program, which helps states restore transport links after major natural disasters and extreme weather such as flooding, landslides and wildfires. For truckers and other drivers who use corridors like I-40, the funding is aimed at keeping long-running Helene repairs moving rather than opening any single road immediately.