Dozens of drivers reimbursed for car damage along I-440

Thousands of drivers travel each day along a stretch of Interstate 440 near Six Forks Road.

Crews recently finished repaving part of the interstate, which was uneven before the repairs.

From the eastbound side, I-440 is now mostly paved and mostly free from rocks and debris. Months ago, drivers complained of old asphalt and uneven lanes.

Driver Dan Cahill swore off driving on I-440 between Lake Boone Trail and Six Forks Road until repaving was finished after rocks damaged his car.

“I appreciate them taking responsibility,” Cahill said of the state.

Earlier this year, there were 57 denied claims.

However, the Wake County Attorney General’s Office decided to reconsider and with an about-face, now drivers will get their cash. The claims add up with some up to $1,825.

WRAL News asked the North Carolina Department of Transportation why the claims initially got denied and then ultimately approved.

“We experienced a clear spike in reports of potential damage from loose roadway debris on Interstate 440 between Glenwood Avenue and Six Forks Road starting just before Christmas 2022,” the state wrote. “These conditions were most heavily reported during notably cold periods – at times with significant freezing – suggesting this was unlikely a coincidence.”

Cahill, like others, have spent a lot of money on new paint and new windshields, but now, some drivers will finally get the relief they were after in the first place.

“I think in our family alone, at least three vehicles had chipped and cracked windshields,” Cahill said. “I know my boys have trucks as well, and they had to come out of pocket, or maybe I did.”

The resurfacing project between Lake Boone Trail and Wake Forest Road has a price tag of $26 million.

The work to mill and resurface the old pavement is more than halfway done, according ot the state.

The eastbound portion has been fixed, and the repaving on the west bound side should be complete within a few months.