KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Drivers who use Neyland Drive in Knoxville will need another route this weekend, when the Tennessee Department of Transportation shuts part of the road so crews can tear out and rebuild a railroad crossing.
The closure covers the stretch of Neyland Drive from Jacob Drive to Joan Cronan Way. It begins at 4 a.m. Saturday, Oct. 24, and state transportation officials expect the job to wrap up by 11:59 p.m. Sunday, Oct. 25, in time for the Monday commute.
Crews will remove the existing crossing and put a new one in its place. While the road is shut, signs will steer traffic onto streets through the University of Tennessee campus to get around the work zone.
For longer trips, TDOT suggests Interstate 40 or Alcoa Highway as alternate routes. Drivers who normally follow Neyland Drive along the edge of campus may find those roads faster than the posted detour, especially during busy weekend hours near the university.
Transportation officials are asking anyone traveling near the work zone to slow down and use extreme caution, because workers and heavy equipment will be on site for the entire closure. Drivers should plan extra time for weekend errands and trips across the area and watch for changing signs as the work moves along.
TDOT laid out the plan in a news release this week. Only the section between Jacob Drive and Joan Cronan Way is part of the closure, so drivers heading to points on Neyland Drive outside that stretch can still reach them by approaching from the open end of the road.
If the work finishes on schedule, the full road should reopen before the start of the work week.
Section: More Knoxville TN crime news
Filed under: Knoxville TN Traffic News
