PDF: TDOT request and response
WHAT'S A VIADUCT?
Bridgelike structures with supports that run from the roadbed directly to the ground often are referred to as viaducts. The portion of the Walnut Street Bridge in Chattanooga that runs over Coolidge Park often is referred to as a viaduct. This photo shows the Linn Cove Viaduct built on the Blue Ridge Parkway in North Carolina.
Nearly 20 years ago, Signal Mountain residents balked at plans to straighten and widen U.S. Highway 127 because of fears of spoiling the scenic beauty, having more trucks on the mountain and not solving the issues tied to the road that crumbled two weeks ago.
"But I think we squandered an opportunity back then to say, 'We don't like this, but we might like that,'" said Signal Mountain Mayor Bill Lusk. "In any negotiation, you don't just scream at people and walk away."
Mountaintop residents "overwhelmingly and emphatically opposed" the widening plan, Tennessee Department of Transportation region spokeswoman Jennifer Flynn said. The result: it was shelved.
Signal Mountain resident Jim Hall, former chairman of the National Transportation Safety Board, said he was involved in developing the 1992 plan.
Mr. Hall, who worked in the administration of Gov. Ned McWherter at the time of the plan, said residents should take a hard look at the proposal, which would improve safety for the approximately 23,000 commuters who use U.S. 127 every day.
TDOT wanted to straighten the zigzag turns on U.S. 127, also called Signal Mountain Boulevard, from Suck Creek Road to Sunset Drive and add two or three more lanes, she said.
Those repairs, Mr. Lusk said, might make sense to nonmountain residents, but the real danger lies just north of the project.
The road goes alongside a shaky bluff on TDOT's list of the state's 36 most dangerous areas for rock slides. The road is built atop unstable fill rock.
With Signal Mountain Boulevard undergoing repairs from a rock slide, Mr. Lusk believes the time is right for the city once again to press the state for road improvements. As recently as June, the mayor had been in contact with TDOT leaders about changes.
"While a long-term solution may be preferable, a project of this magnitude requires planning," Ms. Flynn said. "The first step must begin at the local and regional level. Federal law requires all urbanized areas of 50,000 or greater population to maintain a continuing, comprehensive and cooperative transportation planning process."
Mr. Lusk said he hopes the Chattanooga-Hamilton County Regional Planning Agency will consider plans to improve U.S. 127, but the only construction option available is one that involves creative thinking and perhaps a whole lot of money.
Instead of ripping up the current road and putting down a newer, more stable version, he's looking toward a viaduct.
"Essentially, building a bridge -- away from the road and the rock-fall issues -- is the way to go," Mr. Lusk said.
In 1992 TDOT's plan was projected to cost $30 million and to close Signal Mountain Boulevard for two years, Mr. Lusk said. He suggests a viaduct could be built while the road stays open and for roughly the same cost.
He points to the Linn Cove Viaduct on the Blue Ridge Parkway in North Carolina as an example of what should be done here.
"Highway 127 is the only practical route up and down the mountain," Mr. Lusk said. "I think closing that road for any length of time is not an option."
Signal Mountain commuters could use the W Road, but it has steep inclines and hairpin turns, and large trucks are prohibited. The same applies to Roberts Mill Road.
Mr. Hall said, "At some point, the citizens have to recognize, for access and safety, the road needs to be improved. The state has already designed a safe route. It was a good plan then, and it's a good plan now."
But having turned the road down once might hurt the mountain's chances of getting help again, he said.
"The difference between now and then is that construction costs have increased dramatically," Mr. Hall said. "Back then, there was so much citizen opposition, and in other parts of the state they want roads and the citizens support them."
Adam Crisp covers education issues for the Times Free Press. He joined the paper's staff in 2007 and initially covered crime, public safety, courts and general assignment topics. Prior to Chattanooga, Crisp was a crime reporter at the Savannah Morning News and has been a reporter and editor at community newspapers in southeast Georgia. In college, he led his student paper to a first-place general excellence award from the Georgia College Press Association. He earned ...
Many of us who were residents at the time were in favor of an improved road up the mountain. But our idiot then-mayor and then-town manager told TDOT to take a hike.
Fortunately, our current mayor and town manager have a clue and know we need the road fixed.
Unfortunately, we are now in a recession and TDOT doesn't have the money to build a new road ... nor are they likely to have it any time soon ... nor are they likely to put us high on their priority list if they ever do get the money, given the way our leaders rejected them last time.
Good thing I can handle driving the W Road. A lot of my neighbors are going to have to get used to driving it too, next time part of 127 falls off the mountain (not if, but when).
Or login with:
New Account