MT. JULIET, Tenn. — Mt. Juliet has secured nearly $25 million in federal funding to help accelerate the construction of a new Interstate 40 interchange at Central Pike, a project aimed at easing growing traffic congestion in the rapidly expanding city.
The Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) and the City of Mt. Juliet are partnering on two major infrastructure projects: a new interchange at Central Pike and I-40, and the widening of Central Pike from the proposed interchange to Mt. Juliet Road.
"In my time here we've put more money towards infrastructure than ever before," said Mt. Juliet spokesperson Justin Beasley.
The federal grant could potentially expedite the project timeline by two years and save taxpayers millions of dollars.
"Hopefully we can expedite this project even more by two years and also save taxpayer dollars about $25 million with this grant. We were awarded $24.6 [million]," the official said.
For local business owners, the improvements can't come soon enough. Traffic delays are already impacting their operations and bottom line.
"Whenever we get a call saying hey, we're gonna be behind because the traffic this road was closed off. It's more often than not that we have everything being pushed behind," said a representative from Oxana beauty salon, which recently expanded its Mt. Juliet location.
The proposed design for the interchange is a diverging diamond interchange (DDI), which will allow two directions of traffic to temporarily cross to opposite sides of the roadway to travel across the overpass before crossing back.
Central Pike will be widened from two lanes to five (two travel lanes in each direction plus a center turn lane) from the new interchange to Mt. Juliet Road.
"Whenever I'm on Central Pike I feel like I'm on a roller coaster," said one local resident.
While some homeowners along Central Pike value their rural lifestyle and express concerns about increased development, most agree that road improvements are necessary as the area grows.
"Moving around town is kind of hectic," MacKenzie Munoz said.
Preliminary engineering is underway for both projects. With the new funding, Mt. Juliet officials hope to move the construction start date forward from 2031 to 2029.
This story was reported on-air by Amanda Roberts and has been converted to this platform with the assistance of AI. Our editorial team verifies all reporting on all platforms for fairness and accuracy.
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