Environmental

Impact Statement

Will Be The Focus

Of Public Session

By TOM YANCEY

Staff Writer

A public meeting is tentatively set for this summer regarding an environmental impact statement on the proposed "northern loop" or "bypass around the bypass" that has been discussed for several years.

The May 21 Federal Register included a "notice of intent" from the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) regarding an environmental impact statement (EIS) for the proposed Greeneville bypass, from U.S. Highway 11E west of Greeneville to east of the city.

An article in The Greeneville Sun on May 17 regarding a Rural Planning Organization meeting in Johnson City, organized by the First Tennessee Development District earlier that week, also mentioned the planned EIS.

The Federal Register notice points out that a coordination plan will be developed to include the public in the project development process.

Last week, Julie Oaks, chief public information officer with the Tennessee Department of Transportation, said the next step in the process will be a public meeting, tentatively set for this summer. At that meeting, the purpose of the bypass project, data and other information relating to the need for it, and possible alternatives will be discussed, she said.

Oaks noted that the entire environmental impact statement process is expected to take about 55 months, and possibly longer, based on national averages.

The Federal Register notice states that alternatives to be considered include:

* No-build, meaning no construction;

* A transportation system management (TSM) alternative;

* Mass transit; and

* One or more "build" alternatives.

The "build" alternatives could include constructing a roadway on a new location, upgrading 11E, or both, according to the notice. The notice also points out that "other alternatives may arise from public input."

Doug Hecox, a spokesman for the Federal Highway Administration in Washington, said last week in a telephone interview that the environmental impact statement will attempt to assess the potential impact of both construction and of whatever may be built. He said impacts on wildlife, water quality, air quality and historic lands will be among the factors studied.

Hecox explained that the "transportation system management" option may not apply here, but is typically considered in areas served by a variety of transportation modes, such as rail, water transport, or other public transport.

Newport Highway Status

Chris Jenkins, a TDOT project manager, reported to the rural planning organization on the state agency's work to improve U.S. Highway 321 (the Newport Highway) in Greene County.

He was careful to note that his report "has nothing to do with any new starts" on highway projects.

Jenkins said that, when Gov. Phil Bredesen took office, five sections of road projects related to upgrading U.S. Highway 321 in Greene County and scheduled for construction at that time became one of 15 projects across the state that were studied by the University of Tennessee's Transportation Research Center.

He said UT recommended a reassessment, and a lot of that work has been done since then by TDOT, working with local officials.

A transportation planning report was prepared by local officials as part of that effort, Jenkins said. Last year the RPO voted to remove one section along state Route 93 (the Kingsport Highway) from the overall project, he noted, but the rest remains.

Officials have said TDOT uses input from RPOs to help rank projects that warrant further study.

The remaining intent was to create a northern bypass around U.S. Highway 11E, starting near Hal Henard Road and linking back to 11E east of town, at a location yet to be determined.

Environmental Impact

Jenkins said an environmental impact statement (EIS) is still needed to fulfill requirements that the UT study called for.

For two years now, he said, the RPO has rated the portion of the 321 project from the Cocke County line to 11E as a high priority for funding, including the most recent RPO vote this past February.

The first segment would "essentially widen U.S. 321 along the existing alignment," Jenkins said.

An initial environmental impact statement on that section found no significant impact, Jenkins said, but that study will be revisited by the EIS.

The sections from the Nolichucky River to 11E will not follow the existing highway and will require a new EIS, he said.

He said TDOT would like to concentrate initially on the section closest to the Cocke County line, because the environmental studies on the end closer to Greeneville may find something that triggers a need for a route alignment shift.

Jenkins did not mention it, but a section of the same project in Cocke County, stopping at the Greene County line, is now under construction, and parts of it between the Greene County line and Newport are open to traffic.

Comments and suggestions are invited from all interested parties, according to the Federal Register notice.

Comments and questions should be directed to: Charles J. O'Neill, planning and program management team leader, Federal Highway Administration -- Tennessee Division Office, 640 Grassmere Park Road, Suite 112, Nashville TN 37211; 615-781-5772.