A long-awaited project to eliminate an at-grade railroad crossing at Saundersville Road between Vietnam Veterans Boulevard and East Main Street may see additional delays as city leaders begin to grapple with a new $28 million price tag.
The city entered into a contract with the Tennessee Department of Transportation for a second time in 2016 for the Local Interstate Connector (LIC). The new road will link Saundersville Road and East Main Street just west of the Hendersonville Animal Hospital and run under the CSX railroad tracks. The current at-grade crossing would close permanently.
The project dates back to 2006 when it was proposed as part of the city’s long-range transportation plan. The city entered into a contract with TDOT in 2008, but didn’t follow through with it.
Citing safety concerns with traffic backing up onto Vietnam Veterans Boulevard, TDOT Deputy Commissioner and Chief Engineer Paul Degges sent a letter to then-Mayor Scott Foster in March of 2015 urging the city to complete the project.
When the city agreed to move forward with the project in 2016, it was estimated to cost around $5 million with TDOT agreeing to pay up to $2 million.
Public Works Director Sarah Lock shared the latest cost estimate from AECOM, the city’s consultant on the project, during a Public Works Committee meeting on Oct. 25.
The project is estimated to currently cost $28,137,988 — $24,746,019 for construction and $3.4 million for right-of-way acquisition, Lock told committee members.
Lock also showed figures estimating the project’s cost to continue to increase over several years with a projected cost of $34.4 million in 2025.
The city currently has about $4 million for the project, and is in the early stages of right-of-way acquisition, according to Lock.
Committee members expressed shock at the new estimate.
“This is astronomical,” said Ward 6 Alderman Eddie Roberson. “I don’t see how the city can afford this if we don’t get some generous state or federal grant… I don’t know how it’s possible.”
Chairman Mark Skidmore also said he didn’t know how the city could afford the project.
Roberson asked Lock and her staff to look at other options to help alleviate traffic in the area.
“Traffic needs addressing in this area,” said Roberson, adding that the city needs to “think outside the box.”
Lock noted that $10 million of the estimated $24.7 million construction cost is for CSX to build a temporary track so that trains won’t be delayed during the project’s construction.
During a BOMA workshop in August, Mayor Jamie Clary braced aldermen for a hefty price tag, citing rising construction costs and CSX’s decision to require the city to build a quarter-mile temporary track.
Clary also told aldermen that the city would no longer apply for federal grants for the project.
“We pursued federal grants because TDOT encouraged that about three years ago,” he said. The city applied several times at a cost of $40,000 each time, Clary noted.
Since that time the federal government’s criteria has changed placing a higher emphasis on factors like long-term poverty and diversity inclusion and equity, he added.
Clary said he’s been working with State Rep. William Lamberth (R-Portland) about possibly obtaining more state funding for the project. He’s also asked Lambeth to see if CSX will change some of its requirements that could lower the project’s cost, Clary said.
“I’m as frustrated as anybody that Option A is $28 million,” Clary told the Hendersonville Standard. When asked if the city would follow through with the planned TDOT project, Clary said it would.
“Yeh, we have to do it,” he said. “It’s just a question of how.”
Lamberth said city and state leaders are looking at all available options and talking to all stakeholders to get the project moving as quickly as possible.
“The Saundersville Road intersection serves as a critical connection route to State Route 386 for Gallatin and Hendersonville,” said Lamberth. “It will take collaboration with the city, county, state, and CSX, to ensure the redesign is a safer, more efficient route that improves traffic flow and capacity. We’ve had great conversations and I’m very optimistic we’ll get the job done.”
