Oak Ridge Turnpike Archives

Temporary lane closure on Oak Ridge Turnpike this week

Posted at 8:54 pm July 22, 2018
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

One lane of a short section of Oak Ridge Turnpike will be closed this week.

“Southern Contractors Inc., working under contract to the City of Oak Ridge, will have the outside eastbound lane of Oak Ridge Turnpike from Lafayette Drive to East Division Road closed starting Monday, July 23, at 7 a.m.,” a press release said.

The work is necessary to set new forms along the roadways as part of the Intersection Improvement Project, and it is expected to last until the evening of Wednesday, July 25, the press release said. [Read more…]

Some roads, including part of Turnpike, to be closed for Veterans Parade on Saturday

Posted at 10:40 am June 5, 2018
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

Some roads, including part of Oak Ridge Turnpike, will be closed for a Veterans Parade on Saturday morning. The parade is part of the Secret City Festival celebration this week.

The road closures were announced by the City of Oak Ridge and Oak Ridge Police Department.

The Veterans Parade route will run from the Oak Ridge Associated Universities (ORAU) parking lot off of Badger Avenue to ORAU Way. Participants will then make a right turn onto Oak Ridge Turnpike and end in the Oak Ridge Public Library parking lot. [Read more…]

Emergency sewer line repair work on Turnpike starts Monday

Posted at 4:55 pm August 17, 2017
By Oak Ridge Today Staff Leave a Comment

The Oak Ridge Public Works Department will start emergency repair work on a sewer line that runs underneath Oak Ridge Turnpike on Monday.

Hurst Excavating LLC, a contractor for the City of Oak Ridge, will repair the sewer line at Robertsville Road and the northwest corner of Alvin K. Bissell Park. The work is expected to continue through Thursday, August 24.

“The Oak Ridge Turnpike will not be closed during the repairs,” a city press release said. “However, there may be work vehicles along the side of the roadway. Please use extreme care and caution and allow extra time when driving in this area.

Questions can be directed to the Oak Ridge Public Works information line at (865) 425-1875 or by email at [email protected].

Crashes with injuries reported in Oak Ridge, Clinton

Posted at 9:51 am July 16, 2017
By John Huotari 1 Comment

A three-car crash was reported at Oak Ridge Turnpike and Florida Avenue on Friday morning, July 14, 2017. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

A three-car crash with injuries was reported at Oak Ridge Turnpike and Florida Avenue on Friday morning, July 14, 2017. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

Three crashes with injuries were reported Friday morning in Oak Ridge and Clinton. A University of Tennessee Lifestar medical helicopter was reported to have responded to the crash in Clinton.

The first two-vehicle crash was reported at 9:18 a.m. Friday on Laboratory Road at Bus Terminal Road. One vehicle ended up on its side, trapping the driver, who had to be extricated, or freed from the vehicle. That driver was taken to Methodist Medical Center of Oak Ridge, authorities said.

The second crash was reported sometime around 11 a.m. Friday in the 300 block of Main Street in Clinton. At least two vehicles were reported to have been involved, and Lifestar was reported to have responded. [Read more…]

Council to consider engineering contract for pedestrian improvements on Turnpike, Illinois

Posted at 5:07 pm June 11, 2017
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

The Oak Ridge City Council on Thursday will consider an engineering contract of roughly $300,000 for pedestrian improvements on Oak Ridge Turnpike and South Illinois Avenue.

Under the resolution to be considered by Council, the $298,800 engineering services contract would be awarded to Kimley-Horn of Nashville.

The estimated budget for the entire project, including both engineering and construction, is about $975,811. The work is being funded mostly with a Tennessee Department of Transportation Multimodal Access Grant of $927,021.40, Oak Ridge City Engineer Roger Flynn said in a May 24 memo to City Council members. The grant money will be allocated in three phases during a three-year period.

A 5 percent match of $48,790 is required, Flynn said. [Read more…]

Update: Truck driver was ill, but shipment was routine, posed no threat to public

Posted at 6:30 pm May 17, 2017
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Oak Ridge Turnpike re-opened near Big Turtle Park after about 1.5 hours Wednesday afternoon, May 17, 2017, after authorities investigated a possible hazardous materials situation involving a truck pulling a flatbed trailer with two cargo containers marked radioactive. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

Note: This story was updated at 6:45 p.m.

Authorities investigated a truck shipment labeled radioactive after a driver was reported ill on Wednesday afternoon, and they found the shipment was routine and posed no threat to the public, the Oak Ridge Fire Department said.

The Oak Ridge Fire Department responded to the call of the truck driver who was ill on Oak Ridge Turnpike near Newport Drive at about 11:50 a.m. Wednesday.

When they arrived, firefighters saw the truck and its flatbed trailer were transporting hazardous waste, so as they evaluated the patient, the Fire Department said in a City of Oak Ridge press release.

Firefighters also followed procedure to evaluate the shipment to ensure there was no association with the truck driver’s illness, the press release said.

“Officials closed that section of the Oak Ridge Turnpike as a precautionary measure until the patient could be evaluated and transported to the local hospital,” the press release said. “The truck was relocated off of the state highway to a city parking lot for additional evaluation and the highway was re-opened.” [Read more…]

Turnpike re-opened, truck escorted to business after authorities investigate possible hazardous materials

Posted at 2:24 pm May 17, 2017
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Note: This story was last updated at 6:45 p.m.

Oak Ridge Turnpike re-opened near Big Turtle Park after about 1.5 hours Wednesday afternoon after authorities investigated a possible hazardous materials situation involving a truck pulling a flatbed trailer with two cargo containers marked radioactive.

The Turnpike was closed between Montana Avenue and Newport Drive at about 12 p.m. Wednesday. It re-opened after the truck and trailer were moved to a parking lot at Big Turtle Park near the dog park and a soccer field.

At about 1:30 p.m., the Oak Ridge Police Department and Oak Ridge Fire Department escorted the truck and trailer through central Oak Ridge to Toxco on Flint Road.

It wasn’t immediately clear if there was any hazardous materials detected, although the truck and its containers were presumably deemed to be okay since they were escorted through town, and workers and police officers were standing near them at Toxco. Toxco repackages low-level radioactive waste. [Read more…]

Bicyclist who died in SUV-bike crash on Sunday has been identified

Posted at 3:47 pm February 20, 2017
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

The bicyclist who died in the Sunday afternoon crash between a bicycle and a small sport utility vehicle has been identified as Verne Gilbert, 85, of Oak Ridge, authorities said.

The crash was reported at about 1:50 p.m. Sunday at the intersection of Oak Ridge Turnpike, or Highway 58, and Blair Road, or State Route 327, in west Oak Ridge. That’s just east of East Tennessee Technology Park, the former K-25 site.

Gilbert’s identity was not included in a City of Oak Ridge news release Sunday evening at the request of the family, a Monday afternoon press release said. [Read more…]

Bicyclist dies after SUV-bike crash

Posted at 3:43 pm February 19, 2017
By John Huotari 1 Comment

The Oak Ridge Police Department investigates a fatal crash between an SUV and a bicycle at Highway 58 and Blair Road on Sunday afternoon, Feb. 19, 2017. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

Note: This story was last updated at 5 p.m.

A bicyclist died after a crash between a sport utility vehicle and a bike on Oak Ridge Turnpike in west Oak Ridge on Sunday, authorities said.

The crash was reported at about 1:52 p.m. at the intersection of Highway 58 and Blair Road. The male bicyclist had been taken to Methodist Medical Center of Oak Ridge after the crash.

Highway 58 is temporarily closed at the intersection with Blair Road, and vehicles are being detoured as police investigate. [Read more…]

Roads slippery as more snow falls; NWS advises against travel

Posted at 1:19 am January 7, 2017
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

snow-south-illinois-avenue-jan-6-2017-slider

More snow fell in Oak Ridge on Friday night, and parts of many roads, including Pellissippi Parkway going into Knox County, were slippery. Pictured above is South Illinois Avenue at Weigel’s gas station and convenience center just before midnight on Friday, Jan. 6, 2017. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

More snow fell in Oak Ridge on Friday night, and parts of many roads, including Pellissippi Parkway going into Knox County, were snow-covered and slippery.

Before midnight Friday, sections of roadway were clear on Oak Ridge Turnpike and Illinois Avenue in central Oak Ridge, but many side streets, including heavily traveled roads like Tennessee Avenue and New York Avenue, were covered by a layer of snow. Other snow-covered roads included Tulane and Rutgers avenues, and Providence and Robertsville roads.

The National Weather Service in Morristown advised people to stay off the roads, unless travel is absolutely necessary. [Read more…]

Public safety meeting on Nov. 10 to discuss pedestrian safety improvements on Turnpike

Posted at 3:43 pm October 29, 2016
By John Huotari Leave a Comment

Oak-Ridge-Turnpike-South-Tulane-Dec-10-2015

A $433,000 grant awarded to the City of Oak Ridge would be used to make traffic signal and pedestrian improvements at two intersections on Oak Ridge Turnpike, including at South Tulane Avenue. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

There will be a public meeting in November to discuss pedestrian safety improvements on Oak Ridge Turnpike.

The meeting is scheduled for 4 p.m. Thursday, November 10, at the Central Services Complex at 100 Woodbury Lane (behind the Hobby Lobby/Kmart shopping center). The meeting will include a project overview and public input session, a City of Oak Ridge press release said.

The pedestrian safety improvements are being designed for Oak Ridge Turnpike (State Route 95) at Tulane Avenue and East Division/Tennyson roads.

“These upgrades are necessary to improve accessibility and provide a safe transportation link for people in the area,” the press release said.

The press release said the intersection improvements will include: [Read more…]

Oak Ridge: Driver runs red light, crashes into school bus

Posted at 5:15 pm October 19, 2016
By John Huotari 10 Comments

school-bus-crash-oak-ridge-turnpike-georgia-avenue-2-oct-19-2016

No students were injured in a school bus crash on Wednesday afternoon, Oct. 19, 2016, when the driver of a car ran a red light and collided with the bus at the intersection of Oak Ridge Turnpike and Georgia Avenue, the City of Oak Ridge said in a press release. (Photo by John Huotari/Oak Ridge Today)

Note: This story was updated at 6:10 p.m.

No students were injured in a school bus crash on Wednesday afternoon when the driver of a car ran a red light and collided with the bus, the City of Oak Ridge said in a press release.

The crash was reported at about 12:20 p.m. Wednesday at the intersection of Oak Ridge Turnpike and Georgia Avenue. A preliminary investigation by Oak Ridge Police Department officers revealed that the driver of a four-door Volkswagen Passat sedan ran the red light, causing a collision with the school bus, the press release said.

There were three children on the bus at the time of the crash, along with the school bus driver. None of them were injured, the city said. [Read more…]