Tennessee Department of Transportation spokesperson Mark Nagi said the rock slide that temporarily closed I-75 near Jellico will be partially open Wednesday at 9 p.m.

Students traveling for spring break will not have to take a detour or alternate route because the two Southbound lanes will be cleared and reopened.

Upon return students will need to take the detour set up because only one lane is expected to be open sometime before March 24. Full completion of the clean-up project is expected on or before April 15.

Nagi credited the hard work and diligence of the emergency workers in clearing the Southbound road so fast.

“It was favorable weather and crews worked over the weekend and the big thing is we wanted to get that roadway open as quick as possible,” Nagi said. “We realize that there are so many people who use it to travel back and forth, especially this time of year.”

Students traveling back can expect the detour to take on average 50 minutes to an hour, depending on the day of the week and time or day. Nagi said students traveling back on the weekend of March 18 can expect longer delays.