Mayor Ron Littlefield told Chattanooga council members today they needed to rethink temporarily fixing the Wilcox Tunnel and instead use the money to expand it.

"I don't know how many times we've put a Band-Aid on this problem," he said. "No Band-Aid holds."

The City Council could possibly vote on a measure next week that would pay more than $455,000 to temporarily fix the tunnel. Littlefield said he would much rather the city pay $700,000 for a long-term feasability study to make the tunnel larger.

Councilman Russell Gilbert, who represents the area, said he would like to hold a meeting with the mayor and the residents surrounding the tunnel.

He said there would be a meeting in March.

Contact Cliff Hightower at chightower@timesfreepress.com or 423-757-6480. Follow him on Twitter at twitter.com/CliffHightower.