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TDOT cancels proposed changes on Clinton Highway due to county opposition

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TDOT Clinton Highway Improvements Mehaffey Road July 7 2016

As proposed, a one-third mile section of Clinton Highway south of Mehaffey Road—the section of road to the right of Mehaffey Road in the map above—would have been one lane in each direction with a center turn lane. The road to the north of Mehaffey Road—the area to the left—would have been two lanes in the southbound lane, a center turn lane, and one lane in the northbound lane. The changes would have been made as part of a resurfacing project in 2017, the Tennessee Department of Transportation said in a meeting in Claxton on Thursday, July 7, 2016. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

Note: This story was last updated at 12:30 p.m.

The Tennessee Department of Transportation has canceled proposed changes meant to improve safety on Clinton Highway between Edgemoor Road and the Knox County line. The proposed safety improvements in Claxton have been canceled due to opposition from Anderson County, and after residents objected, including in a petition.

TDOT presented its proposal during a July 7 meeting at the Claxton Community Center. Among other changes, the project would have reduced the four-lane highway to a three-lane roadway with a passing lane in one direction, wider shoulders, and a continuous center turn lane as part of a resurfacing project scheduled for next year.

TDOT said there have been 10 fatal crashes in 10 years on that 2.6-mile section of Clinton Highway between Edgemoor Road and the Anderson County-Knox County line.

“That’s pretty high in a small section of roadway,” Nathan Vatter, TDOT regional traffic engineer, said after the July presentation. “It’s a significant number of fatalities.”

There was another meeting this month to give comments to TDOT. Anderson County Commissioner Tracy Wandell, one of two county commissioners who represent Claxton, provided notes to TDOT. Among the highlights: [Read more…]

Public meeting on Thursday on proposed Clinton Highway improvements

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Clinton Highway 10-Year Crash Map

A 10-year crash map shows 10 fatal crashes in 10 years in a 2.6-mile section of Clinton Highway between Edgemoor Road and the Anderson County-Knox County line. (Map by TDOT)

 

Oak Ridge Today/WYSH Radio

There will be an opportunity for the public to comment on Thursday on proposed improvements to a 2.6-mile stretch of Clinton Highway from Edgemoor Road to the Knox County line, where 10 people have died in crashes in the past decade.

Comments will be documented and transmitted to the Tennessee Department of Transportation. The meeting will be held at 5:30 p.m. Thursday, August 11, in Room 312 at the Anderson County Courthouse in Clinton.

During a public meeting in July, TDOT presented its proposal to resurface and realign a 2.6-mile stretch of Clinton Highway—Highway 25W—from Edgemoor Road to the Knox County line. TDOT said it developed the proposal after reviewing crash data that showed that between 2006 and last year, 10 fatal accidents and 11 others involving serious injuries have occurred on that stretch of highway. That section of roadway includes a hilly, curvy area with no median or center lane. The roadway shoulders are limited in some spots, the speed limit is 50 mph, and there are several areas with no buffers between traffic traveling north and south, meaning vehicles move past each other around curves while moving in opposite directions. [Read more…]

TDOT considers three lanes with passing lane, center turn on part of Clinton Highway

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TDOT Claxton Meeting Clinton Highway Improvements July 7 2016

Tennessee Department of Transportation officials gave a presentation about possible improvements to a 2.6-mile section of Clinton Highway between Edgemoor Road and the Anderson County-Knox County line at a community meeting in Claxton on Thursday, July 7, 2016. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

 

CLAXTON—The Tennessee Department of Transportation is considering modifying a 2.6-mile section of Clinton Highway where there have been 10 fatal crashes in a decade. The four-lane roadway could be reduced to three lanes with a passing lane and a center turn lane.

The proposal was presented at a community meeting at the Claxton Community Center on Thursday evening. It wasn’t a TDOT public meeting, but TDOT officials gave a presentation at the request of Anderson County officials.

There have been 10 fatal crashes in 10 years on a 2.6-mile section of Clinton Highway between Edgemoor Road and the Anderson County-Knox County line, TDOT said.

“That’s pretty high in a small section of roadway,” said Nathan Vatter, TDOT regional traffic engineer. “It’s a significant number of fatalities.”

In addition to the fatal crashes, there have been 11 crashes with incapacitating injuries, 87 other injuries, and 252 total crashes.

The short section of roadway includes a hilly, curvy area with no median or center lane. The roadway shoulders are limited in areas, the speed limit is 50 mph, and there are several areas with no buffers between traffic traveling north and south, meaning vehicles zoom past each other around curves while moving in opposite directions. [Read more…]