Interstate 40 Knoxville, TN SmartFIX40 Construction Photos & Video

The SmartFIX40 project in Knoxville is underway and is noteworthy because the project closes Interstate 40 through downtown Knoxville for approximately 14 months. The I-40 shutdown began not that long ago on May 1st and last through June 2009. TDOT is rebuilding from the ground up I-40 from James White Parkway (Exit 388) to Hall of Fame Drive (Exit 389).

TDOT says that the 14 month total closure will save two to three years in construction time vs. traditional piecemeal methods.

During the closure, this segment of I-40 will be widened to six through lanes and four auxiliary lanes. In addition to interstate improvements, work will include the construction of nine bridges, 14 retaining walls and three noise walls. Additionally, two existing bridges will be demolished, 12 side roads will be completed and seven new ramps will be constructed.

Through traffic on I-40 heading in both the eastbound and westbound direction will be detoured onto I-640 (the northern bypass arc of Knoxville.) Local traffic into downtown will still be able to use the stretch of I-40 through the construction zone.

Joe Babyak was out in Knoxville this weekend and took some photos and video of the SmartFix40 construction zone.

All photos are taken from the Magnolia Ave. area.

Video:

Comments

Billy said…

That's good footage! It looks like pretty much anywhere along Magnolia Avenue would be good for viewing the road work during the meet.

For those of you not in the know, I am planning a road meet in Knoxville centered around SmartFix40. It will likely take place some time around October since the work will have progressed much more by then. Also, for those who want to spend more time in the Greater Knoxville area, folks may choose to view the changing leaves in the mountains. I'll come up with a firm date a couple of months in advance, so if you're interested in viewing this massive project, we;d love to see you!

7:38 PM

Anonymous said…

looks like they are movong fast on this it will be nice after it is done.... nice job.. the youtube clip was awesome

12:51 PM

Chowchilla Mountain Road to Yosemite National Park

Chowchilla Mountain Road of Mariposa County is one of the oldest roadways servicing Yosemite National Park. As presently configured this fourteen-mile highway begins at California State Route 49 near Elliot Corner and terminates at the Wawona Road in Yosemite National Park. Chowchilla Mountain Road was constructed as a franchise toll road over Battalion Pass circa 1869-1870. The highway was built at behest of Galen Clark to connect the town of Mariposa to his property near the South Fork Merced River at what is now Wawona. In late 1874 the highway along with Clark’s Station would be purchased by the Washburn Brothers. The Washburn Brothers would continue to toll Chowchilla Mountain Road as part of their Yosemite Stage Route lines. The highway would ultimately become a Mariposa County public highway in 1917. Mariposa would later be more directly linked with Yosemite Valley in 1926 following the completion of the Yosemite All-Year Highwa...

Interstate 40's Tumultuous Ride Through the Pigeon River Gorge

In the nearly 60 years Interstate 40 has been open to traffic through the Pigeon River Gorge in the mountains of Western North Carolina, it has been troubled by frequent rockslides and damaging flooding, which has seen the over 30-mile stretch through North Carolina and Tennessee closed for months at a time. Most recently, excessive rainfall from Hurricane Helene in September 2024 saw sections of Interstate 40 wash away into a raging Pigeon River. While the physical troubles of Interstate 40 are well known, how I-40 came to be through the area is a tale of its own. Interstate 40 West through Haywood County near mile marker 10. I-40's route through the Pigeon River Gorge dates to local political squabbles in the 1940s and a state highway law written in 1921. A small note appeared in the July 28, 1945, Asheville Times. It read that the North Carolina State Highway Commission had authorized a feasibility study of a "...water-level road down [the] Pigeon River to the Tennessee l...

Angus L. Macdonald Bridge

At 1.3 kilometers (or about 0.84 miles) in length, the Angus L. Macdonald Bridge is one of two bridges crossing over the Halifax Harbour between Halifax, Nova Scotia and Dartmouth, Nova Scotia, with the other bridge being the A. Murray Mackay Bridge . Opened in 1955 and named after former Nova Scotia Premier and Canadian Minister of Defense for Naval Services Angus L. Macdonald, the Macdonald Bridge was the first bridge that crossed Halifax Harbour that was opened to traffic. The Macdonald Bridge was also the subject of the Big Lift, which was only the second time in history that the span of a suspension bridge were replaced while the bridge was open to traffic. Planning began in 2010 for the Big Lift, while construction took place between 2015 and 2017. Similar work occurred on the Lion's Gate Bridge in Vancouver, British Columbia before the project took place on the Macdonald Bridge. At this time, much of the bridge infrastructure is new, leaving only the towers, main cables and...

Gribblenation

Search This Blog