Pipe fails, results in traffic adjustment on North Campbell Station
Area drivers likely have encountered the nightly construction work that began Monday, June 17, on North Campbell Station Road near Interstate-40/75 to repair a failed stormwater drain pipe discovered last week.
The roadwork will continue nightly from 7 p.m. to 6 a.m. until the repairs are completed, according to Town of Farragut officials, who initially estimated a week-long timeframe to finish the project — which is expected to cost less than $150,000.
According to a Town statement, one lane of the west-bound ramp from I-40/75 will be closed and traffic on North Campbell Station Road under the Interstate will be controlled by flaggers.
At 6 a.m. daily, all lanes will open and metal plates will cover the construction site during the day. Drivers
should expect delays during construction hours and lower their speed while crossing metal plates, the statement continued.
The issue was discovered around noon Wednesday, June 12, when a roadway depression appeared on the inside southbound lane of North Campbell Station Road. Town of Farragut personnel evaluated the damage and also helped direct traffic around the site before temporarily covering it with metal plating.
Town administrator David Smoak reported to the Board of Mayor and Aldermen during a previously scheduled work session Thursday, June 13, that examinations revealed a stormwater pipe running under the roadway had “caved in a little bit” and caused the depression.
The 24-inch corrugated metal pipe was estimated to have been in place since the 1960s when the Interchange was constructed, Smoak said. It will be replaced by about 88 feet of concrete pipe underneath all lanes of traffic, according to provided renderings.
Later during its regularly scheduled Board meeting, BOMA unanimously approved an emergency $150,000 contract with Whaley Construction to perform the repairs, although Smoak said the project may end up not costing that much. Whaley is the same company that earlier this year repaired stormwater drainage pipe breaks on Maple Tree Drive and Redbud Lane.
Monies to pay for the project will come from the 2019-20 Fiscal Year budget that the Board approved on second reading during the same June 13 meeting, in which $750,000 had already been appropriated in a line item for stormwater improvements.
Smoak further shared that the administration is working on requests for proposals for emergency services that he hopes to receive later this summer and share with the Board.
