TDOT Says No Construction Worries for Labor Day Weekend

Nashville, Tenn. - The Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) will stop all interstate and highway construction work statewide this Labor Day weekend in anticipation of heavy holiday travel.

TDOT Commissioner Gerald Nicely has instructed all of the department’s crews and contractors to stop road construction work beginning at noon on Friday, September 1, through the early morning hours of Tuesday, September 5. This will provide maximum roadway capacity to the many motorists expected to travel through the state during that period of time.

“It is now common practice for our department to call off all construction during major holiday weekends,” said Commissioner Nicely. “Holidays are not the time for construction to get in the way of automobile travel.”

Due to the layout of some highway construction zones, a few long-term lane closures will need to be kept in place for the safety of the traveling public.

“I’d like to remind folks traveling in Tennessee to use our new 511 information line to get statewide travel and road condition information,” added Nicely. “This is a free service that provides real-time, route-specific details to help people plan their trips.”

The summer travel season could close with record numbers of travelers during the Labor Day weekend, due largely to strong travel demand despite fuel prices that are approximately 40 cents (per gallon) higher than last year, according to AAA Auto Club South.

In Auto Club South territory, 1.9 million Floridians, nearly 1 million Georgians, and 655,000 Tennesseans are projected to travel during the Labor Day weekend, with 560,518 of those Tennesseans traveling by car and 95,407 traveling by air.