I-40 Widening Project in Wilson County Is Underway
TDOT’s First Large Design-Build Project in Middle Tennessee
Nashville, TN – A major project to widen Interstate 40 in Wilson County is underway. Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) contract crews are performing night-time lane closures on I-40 eastbound and westbound from Mt. Juliet Road to east of SR 109 this week to prepare the roadway for the construction project. The $56.5 million project will widen I-40 from four lanes to eight lanes. The improvements will include four 12-foot wide travel lanes, with one HOV lane in each direction, 10-foot wide paved outside shoulders and 12-foot wide paved inside shoulders.
Thursday July 26th through Friday August 3rd, 8 p.m. - 5 a.m. (EACH NIGHT) - there will be alternating lane closures on I-40 eastbound and westbound from west of Mt. Juliet Road to east of SR 109 (just before mile marker 226 to just past mile marker 232) in order to mill and pave the outside shoulder. At least one lane will remain open in each direction at all times. These closures are necessary to shift traffic on I-40 East and West in order to make room for the widening work to begin. *All work is weather dependent.
This project is the first large design-build project to be done in TDOT’s 26-county Region Three area. This project was not developed and funded in phases as the department traditionally has done. In a design-build project, one contractor is responsible for the final design work as well as the construction work. During a design-build project, some of the project's phases can occur concurrently. This is an innovative concept that can reduce construction time.
“Under our normal process, it would have taken another three to five years before construction could begin,” said TDOT Commissioner John Schroer. “The Design-Build process allows us to get this much needed widening project underway now and reduce the overall construction time, which is good news for motorists traveling that stretch of interstate each day.”
The entire project is expected to be complete by December 2013.
TDOT will use portable message boards to alert motorists of the lane closures and traffic shift. Motorists are advised to plan ahead and expect delays. TDOT asks drivers to use caution, reduce their speed and be alert to changing traffic conditions in work zones across the state.
For more information on TDOT construction project activity visit the TDOT SmartWay web site at www.tn.gov/tdot/tdotsmartway/. Travelers can also dial 511 from any land-line or cellular phone for travel information or can follow us on Twitter at www.twitter.com/TN511 for statewide travel information or
www.twitter.com/Nashville511 for traffic information in the Nashville area. Motorists are reminded to use all motorist information tools responsibly. Drivers should refrain from texting, tweeting or using a mobile phone while operating a vehicle. TDOT advises drivers to “Know before you go!” by checking traffic conditions before leaving for their destination.
###