Interstate 24

Overview

Interstate 24 takes a northwest to southeast orientation from Southern Illinois across western Kentucky and into Tennessee. The freeway even enters Georgia briefly. Connecting Chattanooga, Nashville and Paducah, Kentucky, I-24 also provides a part of a regional route to destinations such as Atlanta, Chicago and St. Louis. Some signage for I-24 in Nashville even listed the western control city as St. Louis, even though the freeway does not extended that far west.

I-75/24 Interchange Modification

The Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) awarded a $132.64 million contract on December 21, 2018 for the design-build project upgrading the exchange joining the east end of Interstate 24 with I-75 in Chattanooga. Work through June 2021 started in Fall 2019 (TDOT, n.d.a).

Construction relocated ramps to and from I-24 to I-75 to the right side and expanded all other ramps at the systems interchange. Additionally the entrance ramp from U.S. 76 (Ringgold Road) west was extended along a distributor roadway to the adjacent Tennessee Welcome Center, with a grade separation added above the I-75 off-ramp to the rest area. The Spring Creek Road overpass on I-24 was also replaced.

The Interstate 75 Interchange at Interstate 24 - Phase II project underway from Spring 2023 to Summer 2026 completed work at the exchange (TDOT, n.d.b). Improvements included widening I-24 from Germantown Road to Spring Creek Road and reconfiguring the ramps with North and South Terrace. Work also expanded I-75 to five lanes from west of the CSX Railroad overpass to the interchange with E Brainard Road. Ramps reconstructed during Phase I were resurfaced and restriped to create additional lanes.

Parallel U.S. Routes

Leading south from I-57 to Metropolis in Illinois, I-24 somewhat parallels U.S. 45. U.S. 45 leaves the freeway corridor at Paducah, Kentucky, with U.S. 60 paralleling the route east to Reidland and U.S. 62 to I-69 at Eddyville. Angling southeast toward Clarksville, I-24 travels solo until the Hopkinsville vicinity, where U.S. 41 Alternate accompanies the route south into Nashville. U.S. 41 and I-24 parallel one another closely from the capital city of Tennessee south to Chattanooga. U.S. 64/72 join U.S. 41 as I-24 dips into Georgia as well.

History

The final portion of Interstate 24 in Illinois to open was the 14 mile long highway from U.S. 45 north of Vienna to I-57. This stretch opened in late January 1976 at a cost of $32.5 million (The Southeast Missourian, 1976).

First conceptualized through western Kentucky in 1958, Interstate 24 was completed in the state on May 23, 1980 when a 23 mile long section opened to traffic from Western Kentucky Parkway to U.S. 68 east of Cadiz. Groundbreaking on the first portion of I-24 in the Bluegrass State took place in Lyon County in December 1967 (Williamson Daily News, 1980). The 28 mile long section between U.S. 68 and the Tennessee state line opened in early September 12, 1975 at a cost of $29.7 million (Kentucky New Era, 1975).

The Ohio River bridge between Metropolis, Illinois and Paducah, Kentucky opened to traffic in October 1974 at a cost of $18.6 million (The Southeast Missourian, 1975). Structural problems discovered, including 119 cracks as a result of defective welding in the tie girders, led to the closure of the span on August 3, 1979 (Williamson Daily News, 1979, 1980). The tied-arch bridge remained closed to all traffic through October 1980 and truck traffic until the Summer of 1981 (The Southeast Missourian, 1980).

Within Nashville, Interstate 24 has a short overlap with I-65 leading south toward Downtown. Renumbering of Interstate 265 to I-65 in 2000 shortened the concurrency between the two routes in an effort to better partition through traffic around Downtown.

Further south at Monteagle, Tennessee, the roadways of Interstate 24 separate by a substantial distance due to the terrain. I-24 was constructed across Monteagle Mountain between 1962 and 1968 (TDOT, n.d.c). The eastbound roadway for I-24 incorporated what was a three lane route for U.S. 41/64. Reconstruction of the eastbound lanes to modern standards during the 1980s left the westbound lanes with two lanes of traffic per direction separated by a concrete barrier (RoadWarrior56, 2010). The Ridge cut section of Interstate 24 in Chattanooga was dedicated on December 1, 1965 (Davis, 2006).

East End  ‐ Chattanooga, TN

East at

Interstate 24 ends beyond the Spring Creek Road overpass where traffic separates for I-75 south to Atlanta, Georgia and I-75 northeast 83 miles to I-40 at Farragut. 07/06/26

North at

The realigned ramp for Interstate 24 at Exit 2 combines with an entrance ramp from the Tennessee Welcome Center and U.S. 41/76 (Ringgold Road). 07/06/26

South at

Interstate 24 runs between East Ridge and Chattanooga to Mission Ridge. Downtown Chattanooga lies seven miles to the west of I-75. 07/06/26

East End – Past Views

Past Views Gallery (Tap to Expand / Collapse Section)

East at

The design-build project underway from 2019 to 2021 upgraded 4.4 miles of roadway, including I-24 east from S Moore Road to I-75, and I-75 north from I-24 to E Brainerd Road. 06/12/17

North at

The first sign for Interstate 24 west on I-75 north was previously this diagrammatic sign designed by TDOT. Photo by Peter Johnson (02/29/20).

South at

I-75 south 1.5 miles from Exit 2 to Interstate 24 west before widening. 06/25/12

West End  ‐ Pulleys Mill, IL

West at

One mile ahead of Exit 44 for I-57 south to Cairo and Sikeston, Missouri and I-57 north to Effingham and Mount Vernon. Travelers bound for St. Louis are directed onto I-57 north to Interstate 64 west. 04/05/13

West End – Past Views

Past Views Gallery (Tap to Expand / Collapse Section)

West at

Two miles ahead of Interstate 57 on I-24 west. 11/17/07

South at

I-57 southbound at the separation (Exit 44) with Interstate 24 east. I-24 angles 46 miles southeast to Paducah, Kentucky. Photo by Chris Patriarca (07/18/03).

North at

Exit 44 leaves I-57 north for I-24 southeast 176 miles to the Tennessee capital city. Photo by Chris Patriarca (07/18/03).