The project to widen Shallowford Road is moving forward with the city’s recent release of $620,000 to the Tennessee Department of Transportation for the project.
TDOT has already been using some of the remaining 80 percent from the Federal Highway Administration to begin buying right of way in anticipation of the late-summer or early-fall start date.
“Usually a project like this will take two years to complete,” said TDOT community relations officer Jennifer Flynn. “We will do the best we can to keep traffic flowing freely during construction, but because of the heavy volume of traffic in the area coupled with the complex widening project, there may be times that traffic is affected. The contractor will likely strive to do any work requiring lane closures or reductions during non-peak hours.”
The project will turn Shallowford into a five-lane road with a continuous turn lane from Gunbarrel to Jenkins roads, but portions will only have three lanes. Flynn said that design was requested by the city.
“Originally the plans called for a five-lane section from Gunbarrel to Jenkins and at the public hearing back 10 years, plus or minus, the community opposed the five-lane,” explained city assistant engineer Dennis Malone. “So the plans were changed to address these concerns.”