Randolph Street Closing Permanently Thursday

Knoxville, Tenn. - The Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) announced Monday that as part of the continuing SmartFIX40 downtown Knoxville improvement project, Randolph Street will close to accommodate construction of the new Hall of Fame Drive. The road will permanently close on Thursday, September 22 at 9 a.m.

“As soon as Randolph closes we will start tearing up the asphalt and cutting down the hill west of it,” said Jeff Walker, spokesperson for Ray Bell Construction. “When complete, this area will become the intersection for Magnolia Avenue and the new Hall of Fame Drive.”

The new Hall of Fame Drive is a section of roadway being completed in the first phase of construction in the SmartFIX40 project. Hall of Fame Drive will be a four-lane city boulevard stretching from Summit Hill Drive to Broadway, equipped with bicycle lanes and sidewalks. It will also consist of an interchange to both directions of I-40.

Portable barriers will block access to Randolph and message boards have been placed along Magnolia Avenue as well as East Fifth Avenue.

No detour will be officially designated, but travelers can access both East Fifth Ave. and Magnolia Ave. by Jessamine Street.

SmartFIX40 is an accelerated construction process used by the department to speed up construction. It involves closing the primary roadway at a designated project to allow around-the-clock work that is uninterrupted by traffic in order to dramatically reduce the time it takes to complete the project, thereby reducing the long-term inconveniences to drivers.

In the SmartFIX40 project, James White Parkway will be closed for nine months in 2007, and I-40 through traffic will be rerouted onto I-640 for 14 months starting in the spring of 2008. Local traffic will have access to downtown at all times. Over two years of traffic delays, lane closures and motorist frustrations will be avoided by allowing construction crews the opportunity to work without restriction from moving traffic while traffic is rerouted from I-40. I-40 through downtown Knoxville carries an average of 103,000 vehicles a day.