Gov. Lee proposes $3 billion for roads, traffic

NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WSMV) - Tennessee leaders plan to tackle traffic congestion and roadway projects over the next year.

Governor Lee discussed the state’s budget during his State-to-State Address at the capitol, Monday afternoon. The state plans to allocate an additional $3.3 billion to ease congestion across the state.

WSMV spoke with some drivers about the Governor’s announcement and the traffic issues plaguing their daily commutes.

Rebecca Steip says she was in traffic minutes before arriving at the grocery store.

“Nashville has a lot of traffic, especially around you know times when people get off work,” said Steip.

It’s an issue so many, like driver Mina Issaac, say they can relate to.

“When there’s a wreck on the road, I feel like they need a solution for that because it just backs everybody up for a while,” said Mina Issaac.

With the growing population of the state, the Tennessee Department of Transportation says the growth is outpacing the roadways.

Portions of this funding will also go towards the 2017 Improve Act to fix congestion challenges in urban and rural areas.

“I definitely think it’s a positive choice, especially with the growth of our city,” said Steip.

TDOT says $26 billion will cover a backlog of projects finding congestion solutions and modernizing their traffic plans which will give drivers more options.

“We know that there are potential projects throughout Tennessee that will lend themselves to these choices lanes. But what we will do as soon as we get the authority to do that is to delve into that and come back to the legislator during next year’s session with the actual project that we will propose doing this and then we will get on with it so that we can get it done as soon as possible,” said Butch Eley, Commissioner of Transportation for Tennessee.

Issaac says options are needed to hopefully shorten his commute to school.

“I try to leave about 40 to 45 minutes before my classes start. It’s only a 20-minute drive for me, but some days that’s not enough,” said Issaac.

The Governor was TDOT to continue to research other traffic models/plans from other cities and learn from their lessons.

“I think that’s a good idea because it’s a problem that we face every single day and I’d really like for it to be solved,” said Issaac.

Eley says the Governor wants to avoid raising taxes or creating a new tax to complete this project—instead they will work with the private sector to help design, build, and finance new roads.

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