Solutions to Address Traffic in Farragut (while preserving our Community Character)



In last few years East Tennessee has experienced a mass influx of new residents and sometimes it feels like they all moved to the Farragut area. With growth comes increased traffic. Our transportation network is part of a much larger network of roads.

Our traffic issues are not of own our making.  Increased traffic on the interstate has made our community a more attractive area for cut-through traffic.  The Town of Farragut was founded to protect and preserve its residential character. We shouldn't be so willing to surrender that just so folks from outside our town and the interstate can use our community as a cut through. 

The infrastructure improvements we invest in to accommodate growth have long-term consequences for the Town of Farragut and need to be considered strategically. 


Often, the first inclination is to widen roads and intersections. Widening roads adds more capacity and therefore allows for an increased volume of traffic, and sometimes is necessary.  However, studies have shown that, in a matter of time, the same congested conditions can return and therefore, widening roads and intersections can’t be the only solution. More importantly, widening roads and intersections can irrevocably alter the feel of a place. Consider the asphalt morass at the Cedar Bluff area, where Kingston Pike expands to eight lanes.  





Simply, widening the roads and the intersections to address traffic in the heart of our Town is a short sighted solution which will irrevocably harm Farragut's community character and only serve to drive even more traffic through the heart of our Town. With the end result that the same congested conditions we're experiencing now will return.

Additionally, considering the Town’s investment in a connected pedestrian system, the pedestrian experience and pedestrian safety must be a consideration in our transportation plan. 



A better course of action is to plan more comprehensively to build a resilient transportation network by strategically providing for safe and efficient alternative routes to disperse traffic over a wider network of roads. 

The Town has made great strides in building a resilient transportation network. That work continues.  Alternative routes have been created by:

  • connecting Old Stage Road to Kingston Pike, 
  • connecting Smith Road to Everett Road
  • extending Campbell Station Road to Concord Road
  • connecting Watt Road to Old Stage Road.  
  • widening Kingston Pike
  • widening and adding a continuous turn lane on Grigsby Chapel Road 
  • widening Campbell Station Road 
  • widening the Everett Road/ Kingston Pike intersection 
  • improving safety of many of our roads  



Currently, we have planned the following:

  • upgrades to the Town’s traffic signal system which will allow for more efficient management of our transportation network which has been funded through a federal grant
  • a traffic light will be installed at Loop Road and Concord Road
  • A traffic and transportation study was completed and determined that lane improvements and signalized intersections at Jamestown Boulevard and Kingston Pike and Jamestown Boulevard and Campbell Station Road are viable and justified. 



We continue to invest in improvements to our transportation system. 

  • improvements to Virtue Road are complete and were coordinated with the build out of the Brookmere subdivision, 
  • the alignment of the Watt Road/Kingston Pike intersection has been addressed 
  • improvements to Campbell Station Road at the I-40 interchange northbound congestion 
  • In 2019, the addition of a second travel lane on southbound Campbell Station Road from Snyder Road to the I-40 interchange relieved congestion on Snyder Road and at the interstate interchange
  • TDOT completed improvements to Concord Road (SR 332) north of the Concord Rd/Northshore Drive roundabout
  • Campbell Station Road interstate interchange is to be improved with federal funding.
  • Watt Road interstate interchange is to be improved with federal funding 
  • Town of Farragut and Knox County have federal funding assistance to widen the I-40 corridor from Lovell Road to the I-40/75 split after interchanges are reconstructed
  • Knox County has funded a Choto area mobility study to explore efforts to relieve congestion in Choto and at the Concord Road roundabout
  • Knox County has funded improvements to Canton Hollow Road
  • Knoxville Regional TPO has completed the Northshore Drive Corridor Study which recommends several projects to improve the safety and efficiency of Northshore Drive ()Northshore Drive is a state road east of the Concord Road roundabout.
The Farragut area includes Choto and the Loop Road/Woody Drive area which are in unincorporated Knox County. Knox County has adopted the Comprehensive Land Use and Transportation Plan. Loop Road/Woody Drive is a key east/west connector in our transportation network.  Addressing the safety of that road should be a priority, particularly in light of the planned improvements to Canton Hollow Road.  The plan for improvements to Northshore Drive is discussed above.

Eastern Loudon County is part of the Farragut area transporation network and growth there is also having an impact our regional network.  Loudon County needs to construct a north/south connector between Highway 70 and Hickory Creek Road which connects to Watt Road just south of the Watt Road/I40 exchange, this would take traffic off Watt Road.

Regarding school traffic, finding efficiencies on campus to better handle the drop off of students by parents would go a long way toward resolving the stacking problems that bleed out onto our main roads that currently exist.

Balancing our desire to remain a desirable place to live by establishing a unique sense of place with our need to address the traffic that comes with growth in our area requires thoughtful consideration and strategic solutions. We continue to plan for growth with the long term well-being of the Town of Farragut in mind.







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