TDOT Meeting Summary, November 20, 2007

• Construction
• Environment and Planning
• Administration

• Marking the end of an era in how roads are financed
  1. Fuel tax is primary method of funding roads; this method has become ineffective
  2. For every gallon of gas, the federal government collects $.18, and the state collects $.21
  3. As gas prices have increased, the income from the gas tax remains stagnant
  4. Over the next several years, a national debate will begin on how to fund road projects in the future
• At the federal level, transportation money is being diverted to other areas (ex. Iraq War, disaster relief)
  1. A decrease of over $200 million in federal highway funding has already been approved for this year

• Increase in construction costs
  1. Price of concrete, steel, and petroleum has almost doubled in the past 3-5 years
  2. More countries are competing for resources/goods (ex. China, India)

• Project has been on the books since the early 1980’s
• Once complete, the alternative route will save around 30 minutes, and will keep a considerable amount of truck traffic out of Nashville
• Department has started to handle environmental issues/permits during planning phases- if this had been the process from the beginning, the road would already be complete
• Plan to open the TDOT Resource Center by the end of this year near the Williamson County landfill; will serve as a information clearinghouse for status of the project
• Plans for a Northern loop for 840 have been permanently suspended
• The construction of S.R. 840 has been completely state funded; no federal money
• S.R. 840 will be the first road project in TN where bonds will be issued by the state to complete work. Until now, all road projects in the state were pay-as-you-go
• Around 70% of Right of Way has already been acquired

• Franklin has sped the process up by initially funding the engineering and design work
• The project is in the pipeline, however there has been no specific money allocated for construction. Project should be candidate for funding during the next round of budget discussions
• Public design hearings have been scheduled for Spring 2008. Staff will notify members when the process starts.
• Once money is approved by the State for construction, the project would take up to 5 years to complete

• Preliminary engineering/design work has begun for the section between Highway 96 and S.R. 840; however, there has been no money awarded for construction costs
• This project includes plans for Goose Creek improvements
• At this time, there is no plans to widen the I-65 section from S.R. 840 to Saturn Parkway

• TDOT began testing a new Eco-Friendly Asphalt on the repaving of Franklin Road. The new product is applied at far lower temperatures, limited pollutants.