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Engineers pitch three‑section Interstate Drive connector; planning costs range from $4.7M to $21M per section
Summary
A corridor study for an East Interstate Drive connector presented three options and alignments, identified wetland crossing and grade constraints, and offered planning‑level cost estimates of roughly $4.7 million (short segment), $13 million (mid segment) and $21 million (long segment), with TDOT partnership and right‑of‑way preservation recommended.
Consulting engineers from Consort and Flatt presented a three‑segment concept for an East Interstate Drive extension to link Genesis Road to Peabody/Peabine Road and relieve local interchange pressure.
Michael Flatt and the consulting team showed alignments divided into three buildable sections and analyzed grades, wetlands and the change in elevation approaching High Ridge; consultants said minimizing environmental and driveway impacts required a mix of box culverts/bridges in wetland areas and careful right‑of‑way planning.
Planning‑level cost estimates (escalated to 2030 assumptions) were: roughly $4.7 million for segment 1 (Genesis tie‑in), about $13 million for the middle section (across the Obed Basin) and roughly $21 million for the final segment to Peabody — totals include right‑of‑way, drainage, design and construction contingencies.
Engineers noted eligible state funding programs (TDOT local interstate connector / local‑state partnership options) that could share costs 50/50 and emphasized the importance of preserving corridor alignments in local plans to avoid incompatible development on critical parcels.
Councilmembers discussed phasing, potential environmental permitting needs, and the value of close coordination with TDOT given interstate interchange capacity concerns.
What happens next: consultants recommended carrying the study forward into planning‑level design for section 2 and starting conversations with TDOT about partnership funding and NEPA requirements; staff said planning and right‑of‑way preservation would be the immediate municipal priorities.
