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[I-39]

Nashville has grown tremendously in the last decade since the northern half of I-840 (then TN-840) was shelved, and it will likely continue as people move to Tennessee from elsewhere. As a result of the growth, traffic in and around Nashville is getting progressively worse. Finishing the northern half of I-840 will allow traffic to bypass downtown Nashville and provide better connectivity for the growing suburbs of Nashville.

Yes, it will be costly, but I'm sure they could find creative ways to fund it. It is eventually going to be needed, so it's time for TN-DOT to revive this project before it's too late.

UPDATE as of 5/31/2020: I no longer believe this is necessary

[iBallasticwolf2]

Awesome that I-840 is approved. Will it get signed anytime soon?

I had an idea for funding in that the two Cumberland River Bridges could be tolled both ways to support maintenance similar to the infamous 8$ toll on the Susquehanna River I-95 bridge.

As a side note I could see the TN-386 freeway connected to the new I-840 freeway as part of the project.

[I-39]

Awesome that I-840 is approved. Will it get signed anytime soon?

I had an idea for funding in that the two Cumberland River Bridges could be tolled both ways to support maintenance similar to the infamous 8$ toll on the Susquehanna River I-95 bridge.

As a side note I could see the TN-386 freeway connected to the new I-840 freeway as part of the project.

I'm not sure about when exactly I-840 will be signed. AASHTO approved it on May 15th, but the FHWA still has to approve it.

I am not a fan of tolling, but it may have to be considered here.

[iBallasticwolf2]

Awesome that I-840 is approved. Will it get signed anytime soon?

I had an idea for funding in that the two Cumberland River Bridges could be tolled both ways to support maintenance similar to the infamous 8$ toll on the Susquehanna River I-95 bridge.

As a side note I could see the TN-386 freeway connected to the new I-840 freeway as part of the project.

I'm not sure about when exactly I-840 will be signed. AASHTO approved it on May 15th, but the FHWA still has to approve it.

I am not a fan of tolling, but it may have to be considered here.

In that case the toll on each bridge could be low like 4 dollars. Since the new road is going to be an interstate it can at least get federal funding. Of course tolling may be the only solution for the bridges. Anyone want to chop at design?

[SteveG1988]

Awesome that I-840 is approved. Will it get signed anytime soon?

I had an idea for funding in that the two Cumberland River Bridges could be tolled both ways to support maintenance similar to the infamous 8$ toll on the Susquehanna River I-95 bridge.

As a side note I could see the TN-386 freeway connected to the new I-840 freeway as part of the project.

I'm not sure about when exactly I-840 will be signed. AASHTO approved it on May 15th, but the FHWA still has to approve it.

I am not a fan of tolling, but it may have to be considered here.

The I-95 bridge is a toll not for the bridge, but for the entire section of 95 from 695 to Delaware, as that is the JFK Memorial Highway, which is basically the MD turnpike.

[iBallasticwolf2]

Awesome that I-840 is approved. Will it get signed anytime soon?

I had an idea for funding in that the two Cumberland River Bridges could be tolled both ways to support maintenance similar to the infamous 8$ toll on the Susquehanna River I-95 bridge.

As a side note I could see the TN-386 freeway connected to the new I-840 freeway as part of the project.

I'm not sure about when exactly I-840 will be signed. AASHTO approved it on May 15th, but the FHWA still has to approve it.

I am not a fan of tolling, but it may have to be considered here.

The I-95 bridge is a toll not for the bridge, but for the entire section of 95 from 695 to Delaware, as that is the JFK Memorial Highway, which is basically the MD turnpike.

The point is is that the toll for the road which is collected from the bridge supports the entire roadway. The I-840 north loop would have the two bridges be the toll collectors that support the entire freeway.

[froggie]

Current federal law would allow for Tennessee to toll all of a northern I-840 instead of just tolls on the bridges.  I would think this would be the preferred method.

That said, I disagree with the OP in this being a priority.  At best, it would only help a few long-distance drivers utilizing I-24 West or I-65 North.  Where the need/demand is in Nashville is closer to the core.

[iBallasticwolf2]

How about upgrading Briley Parkway to a freeway from I-40 to I-24. It already has interchanges.

[froggie]

Briley already is a freeway north of I-40 on both sides.  If you're referring to the segment near the airport, I believe there are some improvements proposed but I don't think it would result in a full freeway.  As it is, about a dozen years ago TDOT removed a couple of the loops at the 24/Briley interchange because of weaving concerns, making it a 6-ramp par-clo instead.

[iBallasticwolf2]

Briley already is a freeway north of I-40 on both sides.  If you're referring to the segment near the airport, I believe there are some improvements proposed but I don't think it would result in a full freeway.  As it is, about a dozen years ago TDOT removed a couple of the loops at the 24/Briley interchange because of weaving concerns, making it a 6-ramp par-clo instead.

Yes, I was referrencing the part near the Airport. I could see some improvments at the I-24/Briley Interchange.

[Henry]

As nice as it would be to have the northern half of I-840 built, it'll probably be a long time before it actually is, if ever. (And this is coming from someone who still wants I-494 built in his hometown.)

[I-39]

Current federal law would allow for Tennessee to toll all of a northern I-840 instead of just tolls on the bridges.  I would think this would be the preferred method.

That said, I disagree with the OP in this being a priority.  At best, it would only help a few long-distance drivers utilizing I-24 West or I-65 North.  Where the need/demand is in Nashville is closer to the core.

Disagree 100%. It will be used to get to the growing suburbs of Nashville, like Franklin, Spring Hill, Smyrna, Lebanon, etc while bypassing downtown Nashville, where the traffic is getting progressively worse.

[rte66man]

Current federal law would allow for Tennessee to toll all of a northern I-840 instead of just tolls on the bridges.  I would think this would be the preferred method.

That said, I disagree with the OP in this being a priority.  At best, it would only help a few long-distance drivers utilizing I-24 West or I-65 North.  Where the need/demand is in Nashville is closer to the core.

Disagree 100%. It will be used to get to the growing suburbs of Nashville, like Franklin, Spring Hill, Smyrna, Lebanon, etc while bypassing downtown Nashville, where the traffic is getting progressively worse.

Not gonna happen. If I live in Greenbrier and want to go to Franklin, I'm NOT going to drive to Dickson to get there regardless of the traffic.

[Avalanchez71]

There is no political climate in Tennessee for the northern loop.  The idea of a toll bridge nearly cost an election for a state Senator some years ago.  I do not see any toll bridges anytime soon and the northern loop is history just like I-420 in Atlanta.

[froggie]

Disagree 100%. It will be used to get to the growing suburbs of Nashville, like Franklin, Spring Hill, Smyrna, Lebanon, etc while bypassing downtown Nashville, where the traffic is getting progressively worse.

rte66man pointed out the difficulty in the proposed northern loop routing.  Not worth it for the suburbs as it'd be too difficult to access.  Drivers closer in have Briley Pkwy as a bypass for downtown Nashville and through traffic has another bypass route:  the existing southern loop (TN 840).  In short, the "Northern Loop" is not worth it and TDOT would do far better to spend their money on other projects.

[codyg1985]

Widening I-65 between Vietnam Veterans and the Kentucky state line should be a higher priority. Also, adding capacity to the I-24/65 concurrency close to Nashville. As froggie mentioned, there are more needs closer to downtown. It would be nice for through traffic between I-65 north and I-24 east and I-40 west to have a bypass since there is a lot of truck traffic from I-65 going towards Memphis and Atlanta, but Briley Parkway could be used for that purpose. The western segment is underutilized at the moment, and a lot of that is probably due to the lack of signage directing through traffic to use it. Upgrading Briley south to I-24 would help a lot to remove through traffic from the downtown area, too. 

If I recall, I think part of the reasoning behind shelving it was due to environmental concerns. You are crossing the Cumberland River twice, and traversing more difficult terrain. It took a long time to finish TN 840 in western Williamson County partly due to that reason.

[hbelkins]

Won't the improvements to TN 109 effectively allow it to serve as a route between I-65 southbound to I-24 eastbound?

[InterstatesRules445]

Awesome that I-840 is approved. Will it get signed anytime soon?

I had an idea for funding in that the two Cumberland River Bridges could be tolled both ways to support maintenance similar to the infamous 8$ toll on the Susquehanna River I-95 bridge.

As a side note I could see the TN-386 freeway connected to the new I-840 freeway as part of the project.

I'm not sure about when exactly I-840 will be signed. AASHTO approved it on May 15th, but the FHWA still has to approve it.

I pretty sure it will be approve by FHWA. I think they will get the upgrade done right away. I-840 should be signed by 2019.

I am not a fan of tolling, but it may have to be considered here.

The I-95 bridge is a toll not for the bridge, but for the entire section of 95 from 695 to Delaware, as that is the JFK Memorial Highway, which is basically the MD turnpike.

The point is is that the toll for the road which is collected from the bridge supports the entire roadway. The I-840 north loop would have the two bridges be the toll collectors that support the entire freeway.

[Avalanchez71]

Won't the improvements to TN 109 effectively allow it to serve as a route between I-65 southbound to I-24 eastbound?

Yes this is correct.  There are very few red lights.

[The Ghostbuster]

It's about time the road became Interstate 840!

[I-39]

Current federal law would allow for Tennessee to toll all of a northern I-840 instead of just tolls on the bridges.  I would think this would be the preferred method.

That said, I disagree with the OP in this being a priority.  At best, it would only help a few long-distance drivers utilizing I-24 West or I-65 North.  Where the need/demand is in Nashville is closer to the core.

Disagree 100%. It will be used to get to the growing suburbs of Nashville, like Franklin, Spring Hill, Smyrna, Lebanon, etc while bypassing downtown Nashville, where the traffic is getting progressively worse.

Not gonna happen. If I live in Greenbrier and want to go to Franklin, I'm NOT going to drive to Dickson to get there regardless of the traffic.

But if I'm coming down I-24 from Illinois and want to get to Franklin, I most certainly would use I-840, especially if I want to avoid Nashville during rush hour.

[froggie]

And the likelihood of there being other drivers like you is rather small.  Certainly not worth the cost and environmental effect of a new northern loop freeway.

[hbelkins]

It would be interesting to know where the eastbound traffic on I-24 goes. How much of it stays on I-24, how much goes east on I-40 and how much goes south on I-65?

[codyg1985]

Just a stab in the dark, but I would guess 80% stays on I-24, 15% goes to I-65, and the other 5% goes on I-40.

[SteveG1988]

Most of the time when i'm coming through there in the truck i'm on 65 connecting to 24, or 24 connecting to 65, or 40 going to 40, occasionally 40 to 65 north, rarely 40 to 65 south, as if i'm going to 65 south most of the time i'm actually going to use 22 to get to birmigham.