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TPO approves two TIP funding changes for Knoxville signal and ATMS projects
Summary
The Knoxville TPO technical committee approved a cost-overrun request and a related TIP amendment that add CMAQ/PM2.5 funding to two City of Knoxville traffic-signal/ATMS projects and adjust project schedules.
The Knoxville Area Transportation Planning Organization Technical Committee on March 11 approved two related changes to the fiscal 2023–26 Transportation Improvement Program that add TPO‑controlled CMAQ/PM2.5 funds to City of Knoxville signal projects and adjust schedules.
The committee approved a cost‑overrun request to add roughly $650,000 in CMAQ PM2.5 funding to the Middlebrook Pike ATMS (advanced traffic management system) expansion construction phase, raising that construction estimate to just over $3,000,000 and total project cost to about $3,500,000. The committee also approved a TIP amendment that adds a previously authorized $2,600,000 in CMAQ funding for signal upgrades in the UT area and shifts right‑of‑way and construction phases across fiscal years to reflect obligations and funding projections.
Both items were presented as adjustments needed to move projects closer to construction. Craig Lubicki, who presented the cost overrun request, said the overrun increases the use of TPO‑controlled funds in fiscal 2025 and that the program’s PM2.5 reserves will be drawn down; he recommended approval of the requests so projects can proceed. The committee voted to approve both the cost‑overrun request and the TIP amendment without recorded roll‑call tallies; the chair declared the motions adopted.
Committee discussion noted the program’s reserve management. Lubicki explained that the TPO maintains a carryover reserve set at the start of each TIP cycle and that staff try to draw it down as projects deliver; the Middlebrook and UT‑area adjustments will reduce the fiscal 2025 PM2.5 reserve and affect projected balances into fiscal 2026.
The approvals reaffirm the TPO’s fiscal‑constraint accounting and follow earlier committee action to authorize use of carryforward CMAQ funding. City of Knoxville staff were present and available to answer project‑level questions but did not provide substantive new material during the committee vote.
The committee’s action allows both projects to proceed toward NEPA/design and eventual construction under the adjusted schedules and funding levels.
