Rainy weather has delayed the shift to a new traffic pattern that had been planned this week on Interstate 24 in the area of Broad and Market streets, according to the Tennessee Department of Transportation.
Rainfall over the past several days led to the delay of the traffic pattern shift now set for next week, starting at 9 a.m. Monday, TDOT spokesperson Jennifer Flynn said Tuesday in a news release.
Once the new traffic patterns are in place, drivers in the Broad Street and Market Street areas will access eastbound I-24 differently than they do now, Flynn said.
The National Weather Service's forecast for Monday calls for sunny skies with a 20% chance of showers and thunderstorms.
Northbound Broad Street traffic currently accesses I-24 east via 25th Street and Long Street, TDOT officials said. The Long Street ramp will be closed after the contractor completes the traffic pattern modification.
Drivers will be directed to use 26th Street and Market Street to get to eastbound I-24 from northbound Broad Street.
Access to eastbound I-24 from southbound Market Street will also be affected by the closure of the existing loop ramp to eastbound I-24, according to officials. Traffic will access I-24 east at a temporary signal on Market Street just south of the I-24 underpass.
TDOT is urging drivers to be alert and follow directional signs as they adjust to the new traffic pattern.
Wright Brothers Construction Co. Inc. is the contractor on the $32 million, 1.6-mile project. The contractor will replace the loops and ramps that serve as exits and entrances of I-24 east and U.S. 27 to Broad Street, Williams Street and Market Street with a new, one-way ramp and frontage road, officials said.
The new ramp and frontage road will exit I-24 west at the I-24 and U.S. 27 interchange between the old Wheland Foundry site and the Tennessee River and run parallel to I-24. The project will also include bridge and retaining wall construction and installation of new traffic signals and lighting, officials said.
The completion target for the project remains on or before Aug. 31, 2023, according to TDOT.
- compiled by Ben Benton