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State targets I-24 from Nashville to Murfreesboro for “toll lane” – Tennessee Lookout [1]

['Sam Stockard', 'More From Author', '- December']

Date: 2023-12-18

As part of a 10-year, $15 billion transportation plan, the state will put money toward four “toll lane” projects, first targeting I-24 from Nashville to Murfreesboro.

The state is talking to contractors about “feasibility and timing” and could take requests for proposals as soon as 2024 or early 2025 and embark on a public-private partnership by July 2026 in which vendors would construct and operate the lanes and collect tolls over 50 years, with an eye toward “maximizing revenue,” according to Transportation Commissioner Butch Eley.

The state also is eyeing heavily-traveled routes for “toll lanes” on I-65 from Nashville through Franklin to Spring Hill; I-24 along Moccasin Bend in Chattanooga; and I-40 from the I-40/I-75 junction to state Route 158 west of downtown Knoxville. Those would be separate from general lanes and give motorists an alternative by paying a fee.

In addition, the state is planning to replace the I-55 bridge over the Mississippi River from Memphis to Arkansas, though it won’t involve “toll” or “choice lanes.” The Legislature approved $3.3 billion for state and local road construction projects early in 2023, and the Department of Transportation will put that amount and $1.2 million annually toward 93 projects over the next decade, along with maintenance and bridge repair, and work approved as part of the IMPROVE Act, when the gas tax was increased under former Gov. Bill Haslam.

Eley explained in a Monday press conference the state will “invest” funds in the “toll” or “choice lane” projects, possibly $100 million in a $1 billion job, and collect a percentage of the tolls eventually charged. Motorists in states such as Texas pay between $6.22 and $27.20 to use the LBJ TEXpress Lane depending on the time of day and traffic congestion.

Private contractors would be most likely to undertake projects with the best rate of return, officials said. But a new Transportation Modernization Board chaired by Eley will approve the “toll” lane projects and set the toll amounts, officials said. No fee estimates are established for Tennessee, Eley said.

“There will be safeguards to ensure that whoever is operating these roads will not be able to charge whatever they want to,” Eley said.

The idea is to set fees low enough that motorists will be enticed to use them while also enabling the private contractor to make a return on its investment, transportation officials said Monday. At the same time, congestion would be reduced on general use lanes to increase the flow of traffic.

House Democratic Caucus Chairman John Ray Clemmons and Sen. Heidi Campbell, D-Nashville, oppose the “toll lanes” and sponsored a new bill to give local governments a voice on the construction projects. The Transportation Modernization Act, however, passed the Senate and House with relative ease this year, making such a change difficult.

Republican Sen. Frank Niceley of Strawberry Plains in East Tennessee has been critical, too, saying foreign companies are likely to win the bids and charge tolls long after a 50-year contract is done.

Eley, though, said Monday he is “absolutely not” concerned about international firms building and operating the lanes.

“Tennesseans will be protected at every step of the process,” he said.

Eley noted the state isn’t selling the lanes or roads, referring to it as a “lease process” that would be handled similarly to other Transportation Department property.

Transportation officials clarified a portion of the recent state Comptroller’s audit that quoted management as saying the stretch of I-24 from Nashville to Murfreesboro is “too difficult to complete.” The audit said so-called choice lanes “in certain sections of this route would be better to alleviate congestion and are more feasible to construct.”

Eley said those comments stemmed from a “misunderstanding.” Instead, Chief Financial Officer Joe Galbato told state auditors it wasn’t realistic for the state to build a lane from Nashville to Murfreesboro using conventional methods because of the cost of buying right of way and constructing without a public-private partnership.

Eley further defended the plan, saying partnerships with the private sector will allow the state to free up money for other rural and urban jobs statewide.

The Nashville-to-Murfreesboro section could be done in sections, nevertheless, Galbato said.

The Transportation Department is preparing environmental studies required by the federal government for interstate work, and engineering will determine whether “toll lanes” will be built above the ground or along the center or sides of existing interstates, Chief Engineer Will Reid said.

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[1] Url: https://tennesseelookout.com/2023/12/18/state-targets-i-24-from-nashville-to-murfreesboro-for-toll-lane/

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