TDOT answers committee questions on backlog, IMPROVE Act projects and Blue Oval City ties to state infrastructure

Tennessee Department of Transportation officials answered detailed questions from the Senate Finance Ways and Means Committee on March 18 about the state's long-running backlog of road projects, the status of IMPROVE Act and 1986 road-program commitments, and the state's approach to inflation, bidding and project prioritization.

TDOT officials told the committee the department has worked on most of the projects that were originally listed in the 1986 comprehensive tax-restructure ("86 road program") and the IMPROVE Act but that delivery timelines and local priorities have changed over time. The department said it has actively worked on 72 of the 93 non-bridge projects listed in the IMPROVE Act and that multiple long-running projects have been delivered in whole or in part. "We have a huge backlog of projects that have existed, for 40 plus years," an agency leader said, adding that the department is committed to the projects but must balance changing needs, funding availability and construction-market conditions.

Deputy Commissioner Preston Elliott told…