Haslam To Launch Statewide Discussion About State's Transportation and Infrastructure Needs

Governor to visit 15 communities to hear about local opportunities and challenges 

NASHVILLE – Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam today announced that he will be traveling the state with Tennessee Department of Transportation Commissioner John Schroer over the next six weeks to discuss the state’s transportation and infrastructure needs relating to the functionality and capacity of Tennessee’s state roads and highways, safety issues around roads and bridges, and the impact infrastructure has on economic development efforts in urban and rural communities.

“Tennessee’s transportation and infrastructure system always ranks at or near the top when compared to the rest of the country,” Haslam said.  “We have no transportation debt, and we do a great job maintaining our roads, but we know we have challenges on the horizon.

“We know that we can’t depend on the federal government to be the funding partner that it once was.  We also know that as our infrastructure ages, maintenance becomes more important and more expensive.  And we know that maintaining our roads is only part of the equation.  Right now we have a multi-billion dollar backlog of highway projects across this state that address key access, safety and economic development issues and that’s only going to grow.”

The 15 meetings will be held throughout August and early September in Memphis, Clarksville, Union City, Jackson, Nashville, Franklin, Kingsport, Greeneville, Shelbyville, Murfreesboro, Crossville, Chattanooga, Cleveland, Lenoir City and Knoxville.  Participants will include state legislators, mayors, local elected officials, business leaders, chamber of commerce executives, and local infrastructure officials.

“TDOT is responsible for taking care of the assets we already have, for implementing current projects in the most cost-effective way, and for planning for the state’s infrastructure needs of the future,” Schroer said.  “In putting together a long range plan, we look to Tennessee communities to help prioritize these projects to make sure we’re addressing evolving traffic patterns, population growth, safety issues, and the many other things that impact our infrastructure.  These conversations are invaluable to the process.”

The first meeting will be held Wednesday, August 5 in Memphis at the Greater Memphis Chamber of Commerce.