Silliman Evans Sr. Memorial Bridges | |
---|---|
Coordinates | 36°09′32″N86°45′37″W / 36.1590°N 86.7602°W |
Carries | 8 lanes of I-24 |
Crosses | Cumberland River |
Locale | Nashville, Tennessee |
Characteristics | |
Design | Plate girder bridge |
Total length | 2,362 ft (720 m) |
History | |
Construction start | April 1960 |
Construction end | January 14, 1964 |
Statistics | |
Daily traffic | 154,256 (2018) [1] |
Location | |
The Silliman Evans Sr. Memorial Bridges, most commonly referred to as the Silliman Evans Bridge, [2] are a set of steel plate girder bridges which carry Interstate 24 across the Cumberland River in downtown Nashville, Tennessee. Until 2000, the bridges also carried Interstate 65. The bridges actually consists of two separate spans, which diverge into four separate spans at their southern end.
The Silliman Evans Bridge borders downtown Nashville directly to the southeast and is part of the loop of interstate highways that completely encircle downtown Nashville, known locally as the Downtown Loop. The southern portion of the bridges consists of four separate two-lane ramps that are part of an interchange between I-24 and I-40. One of these spans, the ramp carrying I-40 eastbound traffic to I-24 westbound, crosses over the span carrying I-24 eastbound traffic to I-24 and I-40 eastbound. These four ramps quickly converge into two separate spans, each carrying four lanes, which, over the course of the length, gradually merge closer. At the northern end of the bridges, the lanes become separated by a jersey barrier. While I-24 runs east to west, the Silliman Evans Bridge is aligned in almost an exact north-south direction. Directly southeast of the bridge, I-24 and I-40 begin a brief concurrency; southwest of the bridge, I-40 continues as part of the Downtown Loop. The bridges also cross US 70 (Hermitage Avenue) and a railroad at its south end, and two surface streets at its northern end. [3]
The Silliman Evans Bridge was the first major link in the Downtown Loop around Nashville to be constructed. It was named for an owner and publisher of The Nashville Tennessean, now The Tennessean , who held that position from 1937 until his death in 1955. [4] Originally referred to as the "Wharf Avenue Bridge", work began in late April 1960, [5] and the entire project cost approximately $7 million (equivalent to $47.4 million in 2021 [6] ). [7] The legislation naming the bridge was approved by the Tennessee General Assembly on March 16, 1961. [8] In late December 1963, the eastern span opened, with east and westbound traffic routed together. [9] On January 14, 1964, the western span opened in a ribbon-cutting ceremony attended by governor Frank G. Clement, Nashville mayor Beverly Briley, and Evans' widow. [7] The approximately 3.2 miles (5.1 km) segment of I-24 between the bridge and the split with I-65 (then I-265) was also fully opened and dedicated in that ceremony. [10]
For many years, the segment of I-24 and I-65 containing the Silliman Evans bridge was the only complete portion of the interstates encircling downtown Nashville. The portion of the loop northwest of downtown, where I-65 would eventually be rerouted, was not completed until March 15, 1971, [11] and I-40 directly southwest of the Silliman Evans Bridge was not completed until March 3, 1972. [12]
One of the worst traffic accidents in the state's history occurred on the Silliman Evans Bridge on the morning of July 27, 1973, when a sedan on the northbound span crashed through the bridge's guardrails, exited the roadway, and crashed into the ground about 100 feet (30 m) below, killing eight occupants and injuring one. [13] The accident was investigated by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), which named a number of unsafe design features of the bridge as contributors to the crash, and concluded that the state had been aware of the safety hazards of the bridge's rails prior to the accident. [14] [15]
TDOT widened both spans of the bridge from three to four lanes and added shoulders in a $10.6 million (equivalent to $42.1 million in 2021 [6] ) project that completely closed the northbound span between January 20, 1974, and April 6, 1975, and the southbound span from April 6, 1975, to November 16, 1975. [16] [17] [18]
In May of 2000, I-65 was rerouted off of the Silliman Evans Bridge and onto the western loop around downtown Nashville, forming a new concurrency with I-40 and replacing a segment of freeway designated as I-265. This was done in an effort to reduce congestion on the bridge and along the east side of Nashville. [19]
Interstate 24 (I-24) is an Interstate Highway in the Midwestern and Southeastern United States. It runs diagonally from I-57, 10 miles (16 km) south of Marion, Illinois, to Chattanooga, Tennessee, at I-75. It travels through Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Georgia. As an even-numbered Interstate, it is signed as an east–west route, though the route follows a more southeast–northwest routing, passing through Nashville, Tennessee. The numbering deviates from the standard Interstate Highway System grid, lying further north than its number would indicate west of Nashville. The short segment within Georgia bears the unsigned designation State Route 409 (SR 409).
Interstate 40 (I-40) is a major east–west transcontinental Interstate Highway in the southeastern and southwestern portions of the United States. At a length of 2,556.61 miles (4,114.46 km), it is the third-longest Interstate Highway in the country, after I-90 and I-80. From west to east, it passes through California, Arizona, New Mexico, Texas, Oklahoma, Arkansas, Tennessee, and North Carolina. Its western end is at I-15 in Barstow, California, while its eastern end is at a concurrency with U.S. Route 117 (US 117) and North Carolina Highway 132 (NC 132) in Wilmington, North Carolina. Major cities served by the interstate include Flagstaff, Arizona; Albuquerque, New Mexico; Amarillo, Texas; Oklahoma City, Oklahoma; Little Rock, Arkansas; Memphis, Nashville, and Knoxville in Tennessee; and Asheville, Winston-Salem, Greensboro, Durham, Raleigh, and Wilmington in North Carolina.
Interstate 840 (I-840), formerly State Route 840 (SR 840), is a freeway that serves as an outer bypass route around Nashville, Tennessee. Built by the Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT), it is also designated as Tennessee National Guard Parkway. At 77.28 miles (124.37 km) long, it is the tenth-longest auxiliary Interstate Highway in the nation. The route serves the cities of Lebanon, Murfreesboro, Franklin, and Dickson, all suburbs of Nashville.
Interstate 275 (I-275) is an Interstate Highway in Tennessee that serves Knoxville by connecting the downtown with I-75/I-640/US Route 25W (US 25W). Measuring 2.98 miles (4.80 km) in length, it runs from a northern terminus at the junction with I-75/I-640/US 25W to a southern terminus at I-40.
Interstate 640 (I-640) is an east–west auxiliary Interstate Highway in Knoxville, Tennessee. It serves as a bypass for I-40 around Downtown Knoxville and is also an alternative route for traffic passing between I-40 and I-75. All trucks carrying hazardous cargo through Knoxville are required to use I-640. It has a total length of 10.80 miles (17.38 km) and runs approximately three miles (4.8 km) north of downtown through the northern neighborhoods of Knoxville.
State Route 155, mostly designated as Briley Parkway, is a major freeway and parkway beltway around Nashville, Tennessee. It is 35.1 miles (56.5 km) long.
Interstate 240 (I-240) is a 19.27-mile-long (31.01 km) auxiliary Interstate Highway in the US state of Tennessee that forms a bypass around the southern and eastern neighborhoods of Memphis. Combined, I-240 and its parent, I-40, form a contiguous beltway around most of Memphis. I-240 runs from I-40 in Midtown Memphis to I-40 and Sam Cooper Boulevard in East Memphis. Throughout its length, it provides access to I-55, multiple U.S. and state routes, and the Memphis International Airport. The segment between the western terminus and I-55 is a north–south route, and the segment between I-55 and the eastern terminus runs east to west. Throughout its length, I-240 is designated as the Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Expressway, the W.B. Fowler Sr. Expressway, and the Avron B. Fogelman Expressway.
Interstate 440 (I-440) is an east–west auxiliary Interstate Highway that runs through Nashville, Tennessee. It serves as a southern bypass around downtown Nashville, and is located on average about three miles (4.8 km) from the center of the city. I-440 is also known locally as the Four-Forty Parkway, and is designated as the Debra K. Johnson Memorial Parkway. At a length of 7.64 miles (12.30 km), I-440 runs between I-40 and I-24, and connects to I-65 and multiple U.S. Routes. Combined, I-440 and Briley Parkway, a controlled-access segment of State Route 155 (SR 155), form a noncontiguous inner beltway around downtown Nashville.
The Pellissippi Parkway is a major highway in Knox and Blount counties in the Knoxville metropolitan area in Tennessee that extends 19.75 miles (31.78 km) from State Route 62 at Solway to SR 33 in Alcoa. It provides access to the cities of Oak Ridge and Maryville from Interstates 40 and 75 in the western part of Knoxville, and also serves a major corridor that includes Oak Ridge National Laboratory, Y-12 National Security Complex, and a number of science and technology firms. The central portion of the Pellissippi Parkway is included in the Interstate Highway System and is designated Interstate 140 (I-140), while the remainder is designated as State Route 162. The entire highway is part of the National Highway System, a national network of roads identified as important to the national economy, defense, and mobility. It takes its name from an older name for the Clinch River of Native American origin.
Interstate 155 (I-155) is an east–west auxiliary route of Interstate 55 (I-55) that runs through the Bootheel of Missouri and the northwestern corner of Tennessee. It begins south of Hayti, Missouri at I-55, passes eastward through Caruthersville, and crosses the Mississippi River on the Caruthersville Bridge into Tennessee. The route then proceeds to Dyersburg, Tennessee, where it terminates at U.S. Route 51 (US 51). I-155 is the only road that directly connects Missouri and Tennessee, and is concurrent with US 412 for its entire length.
State Route 396, commonly referred to as Saturn Parkway, is a 4.47-mile-long (7.19 km) east–west primary state route located in the city of Spring Hill in the U.S. state of Tennessee. The entire route is a controlled-access highway, and provides direct access between the General Motors Spring Hill Manufacturing plant and Interstate 65, as well as the business district of Spring Hill. It takes its name from Saturn Corporation, a subsidiary of General Motors that operated the plant from 1990 to 2007 as its sole manufacturing facility.
Interstate 55 (I-55) in Tennessee lies entirely within the city of Memphis, located in Shelby County. The highway enters the city from Southaven in Desoto County, Mississippi, and passes through the Whitehaven area of the city, bypassing Memphis International Airport to the west.
Interstate 40 (I-40) is part of the Interstate Highway System that spans 2,556.61 miles (4,114.46 km) from Barstow, California, to Wilmington, North Carolina. In Tennessee, I-40 traverses the state from west to east, from the Mississippi River at the Arkansas border to the northern base of the Great Smoky Mountains at the North Carolina border. At 455.28 miles (732.70 km), the Tennessee segment of I-40 is the longest of the eight states through which it passes, and the longest Interstate Highway in Tennessee.
Interstate 65 (I-65) is part of the Interstate Highway System that runs 887.30 miles (1,427.97 km) north–south from Mobile, Alabama, to Gary, Indiana. In Tennessee, I-65 traverses the middle portion of the state, running from Ardmore at the Alabama border to the Kentucky border near Portland. The route serves the state capital and largest city of Nashville, along with many of its suburbs. Outside of urban areas, the Interstate bypasses most cities and towns that it serves, instead providing access via state and U.S. Highways. The Interstate passes through the Highland Rim and Nashville Basin physiographic regions of Tennessee, and is often used as the dividing line between the eastern and western portions of the former.
Interstate 75 (I-75) in the US state of Tennessee runs from Chattanooga to Jellico by way of Knoxville. I-75 enters the East Tennessee region from Georgia, following the Tennessee Valley all the way through Knoxville to near Rocky Top, then climbs into the Cumberland Mountains before crossing over into Kentucky at Jellico.
State Route 158 (SR 158) is a major east–west state highway in the city of Knoxville in the U.S. state of Tennessee. It runs 4.63 miles (7.45 km) from Kingston Pike (US 11/US 70) along the Tennessee River to Interstate 40. The western portion of the highway is a surface street known as Neyland Drive and the eastern part is a controlled-access highway called James White Parkway. The entire highway serves as a bypass of Downtown Knoxville and as a direct connector to the University of Tennessee (UT) campus and athletic facilities. Given its direct access to such facilities such as Neyland Stadium and Thompson–Boling Arena, SR 158 has been locally nicknamed "Game Day Highway." It also serves as a spur into downtown and provides access to a number of local landmarks and historic sites, including the Blount Mansion and James White's Fort.
State Route 386 (SR 386) is a major east–west state route, signed north-south, located in Davidson and Sumner counties in Tennessee. It is known as Vietnam Veterans Boulevard and serves as a bypass for U.S. Highway 31E and a connector to Hendersonville and Gallatin from Nashville. A majority of the route is a four-lane controlled-access highway.
The Lyle H. Fulton Memorial Bridge is a steel plate girder bridge in Nashville, Tennessee that carries Interstate 65 across the Cumberland River. Between the bridge's completion in 1971 and 2000, the route that the bridge carries was designated as Interstate 265, until I-65 was rerouted onto the bridge, replacing that route.
Interstate 265 (I-265) was an Interstate Highway in Nashville, Tennessee. It ran on the northern part of the Nashville downtown loop from 1965 to April 7, 2000. It was replaced by a reroute of its parent highway, I-65. It ran for only two miles (3.2 km).