Major changes set for Interstate 40 in downtown Nashville

The Tennessee Department of Transportation commissioner announced Tuesday that a major bridge rehabilitation project along Interstate 40 in downtown Nashville will replace eight bridges on the west side of the south loop.

Commissioner John Schroer said the $62 million project will require 13 weekend closures of this stretch of I-40 between June and June 2016.

"These bridges are prime examples of aging infrastructure, and they are long overdue for major work," Schroer said. "By using accelerated construction methods, we will greatly reduce the time a project like this would normally take and will ensure these bridges can continue safely carrying the some 140,000 vehicles that use this stretch of I-40 each day."

The project called "Fast Fix 8" will reconstruct the eight bridges using a process known as accelerated bridge construction that implements short-term, total road or bridge closures to allow crews the space and time to work around the clock, in an effort to reduce the long-term inconvenience to drivers.

The "get in and get out" strategy allows all of the major work to be done during the weekends, and prefabricated pieces will be a key component of the accelerated construction project. The largest prefabricated piece will include a 140-ton piece of bridge.

During the 13 weekend closures, all traffic will be detoured to the north and east of downtown, TDOT said. Interstate 40 westbound traffic alone will be able to exit at Demonbreun Street.

Local streets will also be closed intermittently throughout the project as crews work under the bridges.

Built in 1968, the twin eastbound and westbound bridges that cross over Herman Street, Clinton Street, Jo Johnston Avenue and Charlotte Avenue show advanced signs of deterioration and are "in bad shape," Schroer said.

In 2013 transportation officials halted traffic on three occasions after chunks of concrete fell from the I-40 bridge over Charlotte Avenue. That bridge is among 80 throughout the Nashville area in need of significant repairs, according to the American Road & Transportation Builders Association.

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Schroer said the project will not only address immediate repairs along the 50-year-old structure, but also prepare the city for its continued growth.

"With the growth of Nashville to be expanded in the years to come, we want to make sure we're prepared for that growth and can handle the traffic, and this project will do that," he said.

Schroer said the department will provide as much advance notice as possible before the closures, but that the work is weather-dependent and that final decisions will likely be made two-to-three days prior.

Project information, including detour maps, will be available online at www.tn.gov/tdot/fastfix8/.

Reporter Jordan Buie can be contacted at 615-726-5970 or on Twitter @jordanbuie. Reach Collin Czarnecki at 615-852-1130 and on Twitter @CollinReports.