McEwen-North-looking-South-to-Whole-Foods-e1470931102717
By David Walsh

By BROOKE WANSER

At Tuesday night’s work session, city engineers apprised the Board of Mayor and Aldermen about the fourth phase of McEwen Drive, a major arterial road that will connect Cool Springs Boulevard to Wilson Pike.

Currently, the most direct routes from the interstate to Wilson Pike are on Clovercroft Road to the south, and Moores Lane, further to the north.

Jonathan Marston, the assistant director of the engineering department, said $26.2 million had been set aside in the capital improvements program at the end of 2016, with $10 million to come from federal grants.

The 1.4 mile stretch of road will have a planned speed limit of 50 miles per hour, with four lanes split by a median, similar to the rest of McEwen.

The project’s history began with the McEwen interchange off I-65, which was completed in 2007.

In 2007 and 2008, the developer of the Avalon mixed-use project paid for road extensions of McEwen down to meet Cool Springs Blvd., and the roundabout that stands today was completed in 2014.

Phase 3 was completed in 2012, and included reconnecting from Carothers Parkway to Cool Springs Boulevard and widening from a two lane section to a four lane, median-divided road.

Phase 4 timeline

City consultants are currently wrapping up preliminary engineering under the National Environmental Policy Act, or NEPA.

Because extensive designs for the entire road were drawn up in the mid-2000s, Marston said less time would be needed for the project’s final design, which he anticipates will take six months.

By the end of summer, the city hopes to seek right of ways from neighboring property owners, which should take about a year.

Once right of ways are acquired, Marston said construction should take between 24-30 months.

“That’s a very aggressive schedule with this project,” he said, pointing to the hillside the road will cut through.

Growing traffic

Marston said Clovercroft Road, the closest connector to the south that runs off Murfreesboro Road, was never meant to see the traffic it does.

According to data from TDOT, the traffic count on McEwen in 2005 was approximately 1,927 cars per day.

In the project’s construction, Marston said the original intent was to just close McEwen. That plan was derailed when a safety study from 2016 showed over 10,000 cars per day had begun trafficking the easternmost portion of the street.

At the meeting, Alderman Bev Burger, whose ward the project lies in, exclaimed in delight, “Hallelujah!” Later, the board voted in approval of the designs.

Burger told the Home Page she hopes the right of way acquisition is on the shorter end of the estimated time, and occurs within a year, with bulldozers set to begin work by 2020.

Traffic comes from current residents and Clovercroft Elementary students, along with those who commute through the region from Nolensville and Murfreesboro.

“It will be a tremendous relief,” Burger said of the segment.

“We desperately need not only the capacity,” she said, “but more importantly, we need this road for safety.”

To learn more about the project, visit the city’s website.