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[GreenLanternCorps]

There's a lot of I-69 SIU 7 planned for FY 2020 in the FY 2018-20 Three Year Plan (pp. 9-10/21 of pdf):

....

There's also revised ROW acquisition for I-69/I-240 (p.12/21 of pdf):

No Lauderdale County/SIU 8 projects, though.

The FY 2019-21 Three Year Plan contains the following Obion County projects, which includes the addition of environmental work on the state line section in 2019 and preliminary engineering on the state line section in 2021 (p.14/31 of pdf):



However, no additional work on either I-69/I-240 in Shelby County or I-69 in Lauderdale County.

Looking at that on the map, it looks like all five sections of SIU 7 are going to completed to just short of the Kentucky line in about 3 or 4 years.   

[froggie]

Related to the discussion upthread about I-69's alignment around Union City, I've created my own rendition that would have fully utilized the existing US 51 bypass.

[Grzrd]

This March 2 opinion piece doesn't include any updates about I-69, but it does mention three tourist destinations along the route of SIU 8:

Tourism in Tennessee is likely to increase with the highway completion.  That’s because several prominent people we know were raised in the area where the Segment 8, I-69 route is planned. About 220 miles southwest of Evansville, is the tiny community of Nutbush, Tennessee, home of iconic musician Tina Turner.  In fact, the singer wrote and recorded a hit record, in 1973, called “Nutbush City Limits.”   An I-69/Tennessee 19 interchange is planned and should serve as the Nutbush-Ripley exit.
Coincidentally, Tennessee 19 is officially named the “Tina Turner Highway.”  
A few miles nearby is Henning, the home of late author Alex Haley, who created the documentary "Roots."  An I-69/Tennessee 87 interchange could increase visitors to the nearby Alex Haley Museum.
Closer to Memphis along U.S. 51 south is Covington, birthplace of late songwriter Isaac Hayes.  An I-69/Tennessee 59 interchange for Covington has been counted in the cost.

This version of Nutbush City Limits contains some scenes of Tennessee 19 and Nutbush:

Here is a version from a younger Tina Turner:

[rte66man]

This March 2 opinion piece doesn't include any updates about I-69, but it does mention three tourist destinations along the route of SIU 8:

Tourism in Tennessee is likely to increase with the highway completion.  That’s because several prominent people we know were raised in the area where the Segment 8, I-69 route is planned. About 220 miles southwest of Evansville, is the tiny community of Nutbush, Tennessee, home of iconic musician Tina Turner.  In fact, the singer wrote and recorded a hit record, in 1973, called “Nutbush City Limits.”  An I-69/Tennessee 19 interchange is planned and should serve as the Nutbush-Ripley exit.
Coincidentally, Tennessee 19 is officially named the “Tina Turner Highway.”

This version of Nutbush City Limits contains some scenes of Tennessee 19 and Nutbush:

Juxtaposed courtesy of Photoshop

[hbelkins]

Speaking of videos showing Tennessee routes, there was an old Son Volt video that showed a bunch of signs for US 41A and a Tennessee secondary route. I haven't been able to find that version of the video for years, though.

[abqtraveler]

There's a lot of I-69 SIU 7 planned for FY 2020 in the FY 2018-20 Three Year Plan (pp. 9-10/21 of pdf):

....

There's also revised ROW acquisition for I-69/I-240 (p.12/21 of pdf):

No Lauderdale County/SIU 8 projects, though.

The FY 2019-21 Three Year Plan contains the following Obion County projects, which includes the addition of environmental work on the state line section in 2019 and preliminary engineering on the state line section in 2021 (p.14/31 of pdf):



However, no additional work on either I-69/I-240 in Shelby County or I-69 in Lauderdale County.

Looking at that on the map, it looks like all five sections of SIU 7 are going to completed to just short of the Kentucky line in about 3 or 4 years.

Later this year the final section of I-269 in Mississippi will open, thus completing I-269 around Memphis. Yet it appears that TDOT has performed zero work on I-69 between TN-300 and where it will tie into I-269. Can anyone explain why TDOT is not doing anything with this section, as it would seem intuitive to me to finish the leg between TN-300 and I-269 due to its relatively short distance and how it completes the I-69/269 system through the Memphis area.

[Brooks]

There's a lot of I-69 SIU 7 planned for FY 2020 in the FY 2018-20 Three Year Plan (pp. 9-10/21 of pdf):

....

There's also revised ROW acquisition for I-69/I-240 (p.12/21 of pdf):

No Lauderdale County/SIU 8 projects, though.

The FY 2019-21 Three Year Plan contains the following Obion County projects, which includes the addition of environmental work on the state line section in 2019 and preliminary engineering on the state line section in 2021 (p.14/31 of pdf):



However, no additional work on either I-69/I-240 in Shelby County or I-69 in Lauderdale County.

Looking at that on the map, it looks like all five sections of SIU 7 are going to completed to just short of the Kentucky line in about 3 or 4 years.

Later this year the final section of I-269 in Mississippi will open, thus completing I-269 around Memphis. Yet it appears that TDOT has performed zero work on I-69 between TN-300 and where it will tie into I-269. Can anyone explain why TDOT is not doing anything with this section, as it would seem intuitive to me to finish the leg between TN-300 and I-269 due to its relatively short distance and how it completes the I-69/269 system through the Memphis area.

As always, Nashville pork.

[edwaleni]

There's a lot of I-69 SIU 7 planned for FY 2020 in the FY 2018-20 Three Year Plan (pp. 9-10/21 of pdf):

....

There's also revised ROW acquisition for I-69/I-240 (p.12/21 of pdf):

No Lauderdale County/SIU 8 projects, though.

The FY 2019-21 Three Year Plan contains the following Obion County projects, which includes the addition of environmental work on the state line section in 2019 and preliminary engineering on the state line section in 2021 (p.14/31 of pdf):



However, no additional work on either I-69/I-240 in Shelby County or I-69 in Lauderdale County.

Looking at that on the map, it looks like all five sections of SIU 7 are going to completed to just short of the Kentucky line in about 3 or 4 years.

Later this year the final section of I-269 in Mississippi will open, thus completing I-269 around Memphis. Yet it appears that TDOT has performed zero work on I-69 between TN-300 and where it will tie into I-269. Can anyone explain why TDOT is not doing anything with this section, as it would seem intuitive to me to finish the leg between TN-300 and I-269 due to its relatively short distance and how it completes the I-69/269 system through the Memphis area.

Last time I looked TDOT has a corridor defined from US51/TN300 north past Millington and was in environmental reviews but has no funding to build.

History
SR 300 was originally part of an abortive effort in the 1960s to build an expressway connecting the northern portion of the then Interstate 240 to Mud Island. Ghost ramps and abandoned grading for this expressway still exist at the current western terminus of SR 300 at U.S. Highway 51 and also at Interstate 40 Exit 1 in downtown Memphis.

Future
SR 300 is slated to be signed as part of the proposed Interstate 69. In November 2004, the Tennessee Department of Transportation announced alternative A-1 (SIU 9) as the preferred alignment of future Interstate 69 through the Memphis area which will include SR 300.

[Bobby5280]

Last time I looked TDOT has a corridor defined from US51/TN300 north past Millington and was in environmental reviews but has no funding to build.

Is there a map somewhere showing the corridor? I looked at the TDOT website and couldn't find anything on this proposed section of I-69. IIRC it has gone through the draft EIS process.

I'm a bit skeptical TDOT will be able to fill in the gap between the end of TN-300 at US-51 and the North end of I-269 at US-51. Obviously whatever gets built will have to go on a new terrain alignment. There's too many homes and other development along US-51/TN-3. The question I have is how they're going to push I-69 forward from the end of TN-300 to loop around all the existing development. The road would have to somehow thread a gap between General DeWitt Spain Airport and the Memphis Police Dept Impound Lot. Then there's a bunch of swamp land requiring extensive bridge work. That could be pretty costly.

It would suck if this happens, but I think there is a fair chance I-69 could actually get routed onto the path of I-269 way around metro Memphis. I-69 already has enough problems as it is with its far from direct alignment. Its path from Evansville, IN up to Bloomington is wacky looking for all the curves. I hate the distance wasting, big "L" shape it takes in Kentucky. The proposed path of I-69 in Arkansas doesn't look much better. So, if I-269 wound up being re-signed as I-69 due to lack of funding it would further erode the long distance travel value of this highway for the Interstate network.

[Life in Paradise]

Tennessee could save some money if they would simply angle off of US 51 near Brighton or Atoka and head straight down to 9 near Arlington or Bolton.  The only problem there would be that I-69 would have to either go around Memphis or they would have to take it in on I-40 to I-240 on the inner south loop.

If they wanted to drop the cost further, they could flare off at Dyersburg onto US-412 and then head from Cairo, TN down around Brownsville and into I-40.  The bad thing about that is that although I've never travelled it, I hear I-40 is terrible both roadway and traffic, and they would just be dumping another interstate on it.

[abqtraveler]

Tennessee could save some money if they would simply angle off of US 51 near Brighton or Atoka and head straight down to 9 near Arlington or Bolton.  The only problem there would be that I-69 would have to either go around Memphis or they would have to take it in on I-40 to I-240 on the inner south loop.

If they wanted to drop the cost further, they could flare off at Dyersburg onto US-412 and then head from Cairo, TN down around Brownsville and into I-40.  The bad thing about that is that although I've never travelled it, I hear I-40 is terrible both roadway and traffic, and they would just be dumping another interstate on it.

Tennessee might as well try to get Missouri and Arkansas on board and route I-69 across the river at Dyersburg, then follow I-55 south if their motivation to punt on the Dyersburg-Memphis section is to keep the gravy train of road money going for Nashville and East Tennessee. In that instance I-69 would run over existig interstates between Dyersburg and Memphis, and would cost a whopping $0 to complete (aside from sign updates).

[MikieTimT]

Tennessee might as well try to get Missouri and Arkansas on board and route I-69 across the river at Dyersburg, then follow I-55 south if their motivation to punt on the Dyersburg-Memphis section is to keep the gravy train of road money going for Nashville and East Tennessee. In that instance I-69 would run over existig interstates between Dyersburg and Memphis, and would cost a whopping $0 to complete (aside from sign updates).

Good luck getting Arkansas to do much of anything that would reduce traffic through Little Rock as much of the finances of ARDOT tend to cluster around there.  Northwest Arkansas developed in SPITE of a decent road network and became a metropolitan area in its own right which opened up more federal funding, so that along with a self-imposed tax are the only reason for the recent development this corner, and the Bella Vista Bypass to complete I-49 to at least Alma if not south Ft. Smith would come long before any development of I-69 in this state other than a few bypasses that may get patched together eventually.

[edwaleni]

From Wikipedia;

SIU 9
South of Millington, I-69 will intersect the Interstate 269 Memphis Outer Beltway, then continue southwest, roughly parallel to U.S. 51, and connect with Interstate 40 at the existing State Route 300 interchange in the Frayser neighborhood. Interstate 69 follows I-40 for about 3 miles (5 km) to the I-40/I-240 Midtown Interchange, where I-69 continues south along the Midtown portion of I-240 (mileposts 25-31) to the I-240/I-55 interchange in Whitehaven. From that interchange, I-69 continues south, merged with I-55 for approximately 12 miles (19 km), crossing the Mississippi state line. The Mississippi Department of Transportation has been working on widening I-55/I-69 between Hernando and the Tennessee State Line, adding travel lanes in each direction, reconstructing bridges, and improving traffic flow at interchanges. Meanwhile, TDOT is reconstructing I-55 and I-240 from the Mississippi line to Memphis. With much of the route already built and at Interstate standards through Memphis, the FHWA authorized TDOT to sign I-69 over I-55, I-240 and I-40 on January 18, 2008; however, TDOT has not yet done so. However, it has and still is signed as an "I-69 FUTURE CORRIDOR".

The Tennessee Department of Transportation has suspended work indefinitely on the unbuilt section between TN-300 and the proposed interchange with I-269 near Millington due to a lack of funding. TDOT has further stated that it does not intend to resume work on this section until Congress commits federal funding to complete environmental studies, right-of-way acquisition and construction.

[edwaleni]

I just checked and TDOT took down its I-69 status page.

That usually means nothing is planned in the next 5 years.

[edwaleni]

Millington Officials Study I-69 Impact
City leaders, residents weigh benefits of proposed routes
By Tracy Adams

The vitality of many businesses in Millington and Dyersburg could hinge on whether Interstate 69 is located east or west of the coming roadway.

The Tennessee Department of Transportation has held several meetings this month in the western part of the state, including Millington and Dyersburg, to discuss where to place a 65-mile stretch of I-69.

Local response. Reactions have, in many cases, split the business and residential communities, officials said.

"A lot of the residents feel, 'If it's coming through my childhood home, I might not want it there,' and I understand that," said Ordis Copeland, Millington Chamber of Commerce president. "I am looking at it for the overall benefit of the Millington community and businesses of Millington. We need I-69, and specifically we need Alternative-R."

It's not a question of if I-69 will go through Millington, but rather which part of the city will be home to next major interstate highway.

I-69 is a 1,600-mile federal highway project that will stretch from the Michigan-Canada border to Texas' border with Mexico. The section of the interstate between Tennessee Highway 385 in Millington and Interstate-155 in Dyersburg is one of 32 sections of the project that is meant to be in use before all parts are connected.

Two alternatives. TDOT has proposed two routing options for that section of I-69, dubbed Alternative-R and Alternative-G.

Alternative-R, preferred by the Millington and Dyersburg business communities, would take I-69 west of Millington with two exits - one at Highway 385 and another at west Union Avenue - that will allow traffic in and out of Millington.

Alternative-G would take I-69 about 15 miles to the east of Millington and connect to Highway 385 between Lakeland and Arlington. This alternative is preferred by many area residents, some of whom might be forced to relocate if Alternative-R is chosen, officials said.

However, Millington Chamber of Commerce officials are lobbying hard for Alternative-R, Copeland said.

"Of the nine goals Congress set out for I-69, none of them will be met if it goes east of Millington," he said. "Alternative-R will improve traffic flow in and out of the city and enhance economic growth.

"No trucker is going to drive 15 miles out of his way just to take I-69. They are going to take the most direct route - Highway 51 - and that will do nothing for traffic congestion and it will harm our businesses."

Impact on business. Copeland expects to see a boom in the number of retail and commercial businesses in Millington as a result of I-69 and Alternative-R.

"The western route means it will be easier for people to get in and out of the city," he said. "That will definitely make Millington more attractive to retailers and other businesses. More importantly, it will serve as a reason to stay and not relocate 15 miles away to closer to that traffic flow."

A retail boom also is anticipated in Dyersburg should Alternative-R be approved, officials said.

"The western route (proposed for I-69) means it will be easier for people to get in and out of the city. That will definitely make Millington more attractive to retailers and other businesses."
- Ordis Copeland
president, Millington Chamber of Commerce
"We are expecting to be able to pull a few big-box retailers, more restaurants and more commercial," said Allan Hester, Dyersburg Chamber of Commerce president. "There are clear advantages to the western route. It will bring traffic much closer to the existing businesses and the economic center of the city."

Industrial growth. I-69 also is expected to have a big impact on the region's industry, starting with a renewed commitment to the area by one of its mayor employers, said Bill Revell, Dyersburg mayor and chairman of the I-69 committee in Tennessee.

"A few years back, Caterpillar Inc. was considering relocating their facility here offshore, but once they heard about I-69, they decided to stay," Revell said. "The impact of I-69 coming through Dyersburg was high on their list of reasons to not relocate."

Encouraging firms like Caterpillar to stay is a big reason why Dyersburg Chamber officials have sided with Millington in pushing for Alternative-R, citing its benefits to area businesses and the city's industrial base.

"We expect the western route to enhance our manufacturing base," Hester said. "A large percentage of our jobs - about 30 percent - come from manufacturing. And having that kind of access to a major thoroughfare will be a draw for some and reason to stay or expand for others."

About 25 miles north of Dyersburg, a new river port project is under way. The project is expected to benefit both Dyersburg and Lake County, where it's located, in attracting additional industry, Hester said.

Timeline. TDOT will hand down its decision on the I-69 route in the spring, department officials said. However, settling on a route won't signal an immediate start of construction.

Construction costs on the Millington-Dyersburg leg are likely to run up to $500 million, according to an early environmental impact statement. To date, no funds have been earmarked by the Federal Highway Administration or approved by Congress to finance construction of the highway segment.

[Grzrd]

Later this year the final section of I-269 in Mississippi will open, thus completing I-269 around Memphis. Yet it appears that TDOT has performed zero work on I-69 between TN-300 and where it will tie into I-269. Can anyone explain why TDOT is not doing anything with this section, as it would seem intuitive to me to finish the leg between TN-300 and I-269 due to its relatively short distance and how it completes the I-69/269 system through the Memphis area.

Gov. Bill Haslam and TDOT Director John Schroer began the campaign for the IMPROVE Act with a list of all the backlogged projects in Tennessee, which included all of I-69, including SIU 8:

https://www.aaroads.com/forum/index.php?topic=3841.msg2104792#msg2104792

When it came time to assess how big of a tax increase Tennesseeans would accept, Haslam and Schroer dropped the tax increase and thereby cut some of the backlogged projects out.  I-69 SIU 7 survived and part of SIU 8 survived:

https://www.aaroads.com/forum/index.php?topic=3841.msg2205146#msg2205146

SIU 9 in Memphis did not survive. My guess is that Memphis prioritized the Lamar Avenue improvements more, and since IMPROVE had to be sold state-wide, Memphis could not justify two major projects and SIU 9 did not make the cut.

Is there a map somewhere showing the corridor? I looked at the TDOT website and couldn't find anything on this proposed section of I-69. IIRC it has gone through the draft EIS process.

I found this snip from a Memphis MPO comment card:



If you were looking for maps of SIU 8:

https://www.tn.gov/tdot/projects/region-4/interstate-69-segment-8/interstate-69-segment-8-library.html

[Henry]

It looks like at least another half-century before any work is done on I-69. The sooner all those sections can be tied together, the better.

[skluth]

I saw today that Google Maps has I-69 running through Memphis from the US-51 interchange on the north side then along the old west side of I-240 through downtown and Southaven to where it heads west to Tunica from I-55. I don't know if that is new but I hadn't noticed it before. I know Google is not the arbiter of highways and they get plenty wrong. Just curious if this is now the official route or just something Google made up.

https://www.google.com/maps/@35.19648,-90.0294682,15z?hl=en

[sparker]

I saw today that Google Maps has I-69 running through Memphis from the US-51 interchange on the north side then along the old west side of I-240 through downtown and Southaven to where it heads west to Tunica from I-55. I don't know if that is new but I hadn't noticed it before. I know Google is not the arbiter of highways and they get plenty wrong. Just curious if this is now the official route or just something Google made up.

https://www.google.com/maps/@35.19648,-90.0294682,15z?hl=en

That is the designated route for I-69; I-55 is co-signed with I-69 in MS -- but AFAIK, not as of yet in TN; neither is I-240 or 40.  It probably won't get signage until at least actual letting is done in regards to SIU's 8 & 9.  If SIU 8 precedes SIU 9 time-wise, then the section of US 51 between TN 300 and TN 385/I-269 could conceivably be "trailblazed" as "TO I-69".  But I wouldn't hold my breath; the Google signage is simply premature.

[MikeTheActuary]

I saw today that Google Maps has I-69 running through Memphis from the US-51 interchange on the north side then along the old west side of I-240 through downtown and Southaven to where it heads west to Tunica from I-55. I don't know if that is new but I hadn't noticed it before. I know Google is not the arbiter of highways and they get plenty wrong. Just curious if this is now the official route or just something Google made up.

https://www.google.com/maps/@35.19648,-90.0294682,15z?hl=en

That is the designated route for I-69; I-55 is co-signed with I-69 in MS -- but AFAIK, not as of yet in TN; neither is I-240 or 40.  It probably won't get signage until at least actual letting is done in regards to SIU's 8 & 9.  If SIU 8 precedes SIU 9 time-wise, then the section of US 51 between TN 300 and TN 385/I-269 could conceivably be "trailblazed" as "TO I-69".  But I wouldn't hold my breath; the Google signage is simply premature.

I was in a Wikipedia edit war on the I-269 pages last December, and I'm the person who "demoted" I-69 in Tennessee there.

Basically, there seems to be no evidence that TDOT considers I-69 to exist in TN at this point.  While they have approval to post it in Memphis, it looks like they aren't going to make it official any time soon.

Similarly, despite what Google Maps say, I-269 is only approved south of I-40...and it's debatable whether TDOT believes I-269 exists north of Collierville.  Yes, it's been posted, and in the past few months, some TDOT documents (maps, bridge inventories) have changed SR 385 references to I-269, but the TDOT engineer I traded emails with said that they wouldn't actually consider the change from SR 385 to I-269 to be official until they publicly announced it.   At the time I contacted him, the announcement would have come after the re-signing contract was completed and accepted.   I don't know whether formal acceptance has come yet, or if at this point, they're stalling the announcement until the final MS stretch opens in a few weeks.

[seicer]

Looking further at the property lines, TNDOT has acquired some land east and south of Union City:

Future terminus with US 51/US 45W: https://goo.gl/maps/7MN9zYffFAw
Future exit with TN 21: https://goo.gl/maps/6CE3ivKWFp12

I'm curious if TNDOT will follow US 51 further south of TN 21.

[mvak36]

Looking further at the property lines, TNDOT has acquired some land east and south of Union City:

Future terminus with US 51/US 45W: https://goo.gl/maps/7MN9zYffFAw
Future exit with TN 21: https://goo.gl/maps/6CE3ivKWFp12

I'm curious if TNDOT will follow US 51 further south of TN 21.

If you go to this site, you can see what routing they're gonna do from south of Troy all the way to the KY border. https://www.tdot.tn.gov/projectneeds/spot#/

It's easier if you turn off all the programs and only turn on the Trade button on the left side. Once that's done, if you move your cursor over those Trade icons on the map, it will show you the routing of each section of I-69.

I put together a bunch of screenshots taken from the site to show the approximate routing. I don't know if what's shown on that page is the final routing, but at least it's kind of close. If you wanted to zoom in closer for each section you can go to that link I gave above.

[seicer]

Thank you!

It looks like its bypasses of bypasses in many instances - even further south. So much of the ROW has been developed upon that it's probably easier to go with a new terrain.

[froggie]

^ For Troy, yes it's developed.  But I demonstrated earlier this year in the Fictional part of the forum how they could have utilized the existing US 51 Union City bypass.

[GreenLanternCorps]

There's a lot of I-69 SIU 7 planned for FY 2020 in the FY 2018-20 Three Year Plan (pp. 9-10/21 of pdf):

....

There's also revised ROW acquisition for I-69/I-240 (p.12/21 of pdf):

No Lauderdale County/SIU 8 projects, though.

The FY 2019-21 Three Year Plan contains the following Obion County projects, which includes the addition of environmental work on the state line section in 2019 and preliminary engineering on the state line section in 2021 (p.14/31 of pdf):



However, no additional work on either I-69/I-240 in Shelby County or I-69 in Lauderdale County.

Looking at the above chart, work is scheduled to start on Future I-69 from West of TN 21 to US 51 on the North side of Union City sometime in the upcoming year. 

Does any one know when would TDOT put the project up for bids and when would construction start?