TDOT talks upcoming West Tenn. road projects

JACKSON, Tenn. — Gov. Bill Haslam and Tennessee Department of Transportation Commissioner John Schroer released TDOT’s annual three-year transportation plan. It includes over 100 projects and more than a dozen in West Tennessee.

Interstate 40 in Jackson will soon expand to three lanes. It is one of 13 projects in West Tennessee included in TDOT’s three-year transportation program.

“It’s going to be a game changer we think for not only our business but for this entire interchange and for this entire community,” Old Country Store CEO Clark Shaw said.

Shaw and his son, Brooks, run the Old Country Store at Interstate 40 and the Highway 45 Bypass. They said the project will make it easier for visitors to get in and out.

“Anything that can impact the ease of people coming in, spending money, is a great thing for everybody,” Brooks said.

TDOT’s plan also includes bypass construction in Benton, Henderson and Haywood counties, plus work on a bypass in south Jackson.

“We’re getting the alignment and the design ready to go into that right-of-way phase,” TDOT Region Four Community Relations Officer Nichole Lawrence said.

Drivers can also expect construction on Highway 18 from Highway 45 in Jackson to Medon-Malesus Road. Construction on Highway 18 is scheduled to begin in fiscal year 2020. “A lot of these projects are to make our routes safer and more accessible, for us to make sure we get from point A to point B,” Lawrence said.

TDOT said construction should begin this year at the intersection of I-40 and Casey Jones Lane. “We are very excited and we are thrilled to be kind of one of the first projects selected,” Brooks said.

Lawrence asked drivers to be patient with the construction.

Funding from the IMPROVE Act will help pay for these projects. It raises the tax on gas 6 cents and 10 cents on diesel.