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CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. - Construction crews with Charles Blalock & Sons continue to work to clear a rockslide that closed US64 in Polk County. Crews today drilled the side of the slope in preparation for a pre-split blast that will bring down the remaining outcrop of unstable rock positioned above the roadway surface. Crews are also working to extend the 275 ton crane pad east in order to gain better access to the eastern face of the slope above the TVA dam.  Workers are scheduled to continue drilling, scaling and blasting work as weather permits.

 

Knoxville – The Tennessee Department of Transportation today awarded an emergency contract to Charles Blalock & Sons, Inc. for the clean-up and repair of the US441 (The Spur) rockslide in Sevier County. Blalock was awarded a $713,909 contract to clear the rockslide and safely open the southbound lanes by March 12, 2010.

 

“We understand the significance of this road to tourists, Sevier County and the residents of East Tennessee,” said TDOT Region One Director Steve Borden. “We look forward to getting this project underway and completed in a timely and safe manner.”

 

SNEEDVILLE – Fifty Hancock County residents have their hard hats and safety vests in hand and are ready to start their new jobs with the Tennessee Department of Transportation.  The employees are part of a plan outlined by Governor Phil Bredesen on December 16, 2009 to use federal Recovery Act funds to reduce unemployment in Hancock County. On Monday, February 1, 45 new hires began their employee and safety training with TDOT and on Tuesday the department hired five more Hancock County residents. 

 

“TDOT has worked quickly to hire, train and place these Hancock County citizens on the job as highway maintenance workers,” said Bredesen. “These new jobs, along with others outlined in the plan to reduce unemployment in Hancock County, should help ease some of the strain caused by the economic downturn.”

 

 

CHATTANOOGA - Construction crews with Blalock & Sons and Dyno Nobel set off a series of pre-split and trim explosives on Wednesday in four different locations along the slope.  Thursday crews cleaned up the debris on the roadway surface that was created by the blasts by using a hydraulic ram-hoe and trackhoe.  Crews continue working on the slope to remove loose boulders and debris. Heavy rain and high winds have hampered operations today, but work will resume as soon as weather permits.

 

NASHVILLE – The Tennessee Department of Transportation Governor’s Highway Safety Office, Tennessee Titans and Tennessee Department of Safety are once again teaming up to remind Tennessee football fans that real Fans Don’t Let Fans Drive Drunk this Super Bowl weekend. 

 

“When it comes to preventing drunk driving, we’re all part of the team,” said TDOT Commissioner Gerald Nicely. “Designating a sober driver this weekend is the best way to ensure everyone has a safe Super Bowl experience.”

 

NASHVILLE – At 455 miles in length, Tennessee is home to the longest stretch of Interstate 40 in the nation and, for the fourth straight year, the nation’s truckers have rated it the best stretch of roadway in America. In addition, truck drivers rated Tennessee’s overall roadway system third best in the country for the eleventh year in a row according to a recent survey of truck owners and operators by Overdrive Magazine.

 

"Tennessee’s roadways are a major economic asset in our work to attract opportunities for growth and development in our communities,” said Governor Phil Bredesen. “I’m pleased to see this consistently high ranking of the state’s transportation system from some of the people who use it the most – our nation’s truckers.”

NASHVILLE – Tennessee Department of Transportation crews will close multiple lanes on White Bridge Road near Interstate 40 this weekend for the installation of bridge beams for the I-40/White Bridge Road Interchange Modification project. The Interstate 40 Eastbound off-ramp at White Bridge Road (Exit #204) will also be closed for the majority of the weekend.

 

The closure periods are as follows: 

During the closures, crews will use cranes to lift 10 steel bridge beams, each weighing up to 60,000 pounds, across White Bridge Road and onto the large piers located on the east side of the interchange. In addition to the lane closures that will be in place, there will be several rolling roadblocks in both directions of White Bridge Road while the beams are lifted across the travel lanes.

 

NASHVILLE – Tennessee Department of Transportation crews will once again close a short section of Interstate 440 in Nashville this weekend as a major concrete rehabilitation project continues. Contract crews will close I-440 Eastbound from the Interstate 40 junction on the west side of Nashville to the Interstate 65 junction at 8:00 p.m. on Friday, February 5, 2010. I-440 will reopen no later than 6:00 a.m. Monday, February 8, 2010.

  

TDOT will use its many overhead message boards across the city to direct motorists around the closure. Several portable message boards will also be placed at strategic points on Nashville interstates to alert drivers of detour routes. Most of the traffic will be diverted to Interstate 40 through downtown Nashville. In addition, information on the closures will be broadcast on the TDOT SmartWay Highway Advisory Radio station (1680 AM) and on 511.

 

NASHVILLE – The Tennessee Department of Transportation, Governor’s Highway Safety Office and Tennessee Department of Safety will join the Tennessee Titans Friday, February 5 to honor Titans fans who pledged to be designated drivers during this year’s football season and to remind all Tennesseans to designate a sober driver if consuming alcohol during this weekend’s Super Bowl. During the 2009 season, more than 6,000 Titans fans promised to refrain from drinking and be the designated driver for friends and family, making the Titans the top team in the AFC-South for designated drivers at home games.  Several of the fans who pledged to be designated drivers will be recognized and will receive an exclusive tour of LP Field. 

CHATTANOOGA, Tenn. - Construction crews with Charles Blalock & Sons resumed operations today after work was suspended over the weekend due to icy roadway and site conditions.  Today crews are breaking up and hauling away rockfall debris on the roadway that was generated from Thursday’s pre-split blasts.  This clearing of the roadway will allow crews to clear off the crane pad so that mechanical scaling, drilling and blasting operations that require the use of the 275-ton crane can resume.  This week the contractor will continue his operations in an eastward direction in order to make room on the western side of the slope for the new 150 ton crane and associated rock bolting operations.