Greeneville Bypass

Greene County

Overview

TDOT is considering a bypass around Greeneville in Greene County, Tennessee. An Environmental Impact Statement (EIS) is currently underway to determine what impacts the proposed project will have on the natural and human environment. The need for this project was identified by the Tennessee State House of Representatives in 1994 in legislation which addressed transportation issues from Pigeon Forge through Sevierville, Newport, Greeneville, and the Tri-Cities. Since the 1994 legislation, several transportation studies have been conducted for Greeneville, one in 2002 and another in 2006.

The EIS will examine the facts presented in the former studies and conduct new studies which will examine all reasonable alternatives for a Greeneville bypass. The goals for the bypass will be to improve regional mobility, improve safety, promote economic growth, and reduce truck traffic on US-11E in Greeneville.

The attached map illustrates the location of the alternatives that are being studied.
Download Map (pdf)

Proposed Design

  1. Alternative A-1 – This alternative would involve the construction a new roadway north of existing U.S. 11E from a point west of Hal Henard Road, to a point near Chuckey Highway on U.S. 11E. The roadway would consist of four travel lanes with a depressed grass median, 10- to 12-foot shoulders, and full access control within a 350-foot right-of-way.
  2. Alternative B – This alternative would involve the construction of a new roadway north of existing U.S. 11E from a point west of Hal Henard Road to SR-107. The roadway would consist of four travel lanes with a depressed grass median, 10- to 12-foot shoulders, and full access control within a 350-foot right-of-way.
  3. Widen U.S. 11E – U.S. 11E is currently a four-lane divided facility with a depressed grassed median and center turn lanes at certain locations. Intersections throughout the project area are comprised of mostly “at grade” signalized and un-signalized intersections. There is one grade-separated interchange within the project area. This interchange is located at the intersection of SR-70 (U.S. 321) and U.S. 11E. Development along U.S. 11E is comprised of a large number of businesses located adjacent to, or near, the existing U.S. 11E right-of-way limit. The total number of businesses located along existing U.S. 11E is illustrated in Table 9. Although the 2006 TPR gives detailed typical section criteria (as described below) for this alternative, the exact number of businesses that would need to be acquired as a result of widening existing U.S. 11E will not be known until further engineering and environmental studies are completed to determine whether the widening would be symmetrical, asymmetrical, or a combination of both.
    As currently presented in the TPR, this alternative would involve widening U.S. 11E along its existing alignment by constructing two additional travel lanes (one in each direction). From west of Hal Henard Road to Bachman Drive, the roadway would consist of six travel lanes with a variable depressed grass median, and 10- to 12-foot shoulders within a variable right-of-way of 170 to 250 feet. From Bachman Drive to Erwin Highway, the roadway would consist of six travel lanes with a center turn lane, 10- to 12-foot shoulders within a minimum right-of-way of 108 feet. From Erwin Highway to east of Stone Dam Road, the roadway would consist of six travel lanes with a depressed grass median, and 10- to 12-foot shoulders within a 300-foot right-of-way. There is currently no access control along U.S. 11E except by permit. No changes in access control are anticipated for this alternative. Although the above design criteria will be considered in the development of this alternative, the exact impacts of this alternative (including business and residential relocations) cannot be known until further engineering and environmental studies are completed to determine whether the widening will be symmetrical, asymmetrical, or a combination of both.
  4. Transportation Systems Management (TSM) and Access Management along Existing U.S. 11E – This alternative will examine TSM techniques such as the installation and upgrading of signal system improvements at several intersections along U.S. 11E, and will also examine access management improvements that could allow improved traffic flow and reduced accidents. In certain locations along existing U.S. 11E there are multiple driveway openings that are very wide and spaced closely together with an open median in the middle of the roadway. This allows numerous closely spaced vehicles to dart out onto the roadway in a sporadic, unpredictable way. This leads to conflict points and increased crash rates.

TDOT is currently performing technical studies on each of the project alternatives to determine the impacts to the natural and human environment. Studies are currently underway in the following areas:

  • Noise Impacts
  • Air Quality
  • Architectural/Historical Resources
  • Archaeological Resources
  • Ecology & Natural Resources
  • Floodplains
  • Hazardous Materials
  • Soils and Geology
  • Land Use
  • Social and Community Impacts
  • Economic and Business Impacts
  • Conceptual Relocation Plans
  • Environmental Justice
  • Farmlands
  • Visual Impacts
  • Parks and Recreation Resources / Section 6(f)
  • Section 4(f) properties
  • Pedestrian and Bicycle Consideration
  • Energy
  • Indirect and Cumulative Impacts
  • Construction Impact