Tennessee Department of Transportation

The Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) is the department of transportation for the State of Tennessee, with multimodal responsibilities in roadways, aviation, public transit, waterways, and railroads. It was established in 1915 as the Tennessee Department of Highways and Public Works, and renamed the Tennessee Department of Transportation in 1972. The core agency mission of TDOT is to provide a safe and reliable transportation system for people, goods, and services that supports economic prosperity in Tennessee. Since 1998, TDOT has been ranked amongst the top five in the nation for quality highway infrastructure.

Organization

TDOT is headed by a single commissioner who is appointed by the governor. The leadership level also includes the Deputy Commissioner, and leaders for legal, aeronautics, community relations, and legislation. Three bureaus exist under this level. Most administrative offices operate from the TDOT headquarters in downtown Nashville, the state's capital city. There are also four regional offices across the state. Each region is further divided into districts which are then subdivided into county facilities.

The following table lists the regions, district offices, maintenance and construction offices for each region, and counties served.

{| class="wikitable"

|+TDOT Regions with their Constituent Districts

!scope="col" | Region

!scope="col" | District

!scope="col" | District Office

!scope="col" | Maintenance Offices

!scope="col" | Construction Offices

!scope="col" | Counties

| rowspan=3 | 1 (Knoxville)

! scope="row" | 17

| Johnson City

| Johnson City, Morristown

|Johnson City, Morristown, Elizabethton

| Carter, Greene, Hamblen, Hancock, Hawkins, Johnson, Sullivan, Unicoi, Washington

! scope="row" | 18

| Knoxville

| Knoxville, Newport

| Knoxville(2), Newport

| Anderson, Cocke, Grainger, Jefferson, Knox, Sevier, Union

! scope="row" | 19

| Harriman

| Harriman, LaFollette

| Harriman, LaFollette, Maryville

| Blount, Campbell, Claiborne, Loudon, Monroe, Morgan, Roane, Scott

| rowspan=3 | 2 (Chattanooga)

!scope="row" | 27

| Cookeville

| Cookeville, Crossville

| Cookeville, Crossville, Livingston

| Clay, Cumberland, DeKalb, Fentress, Jackson, Overton, Pickett, Putnam, White

! scope="row" |28

| Tullahoma

| Tullahoma, Dunlap

| Tullahoma, Dunlap, McMinnville

| Bledsoe, Cannon, Coffee, Franklin, Grundy, Marion, Sequatchie, Van Buren, Warren

! scope="row" |29

| Chattanooga

| Chattanooga, Benton

| Chattanooga(2), Cleveland

| Bradley, Hamilton, McMinn, Meigs, Polk, Rhea

| rowspan=3 |3 (Nashville)

! scope="row" | 37

| Nashville

| Nashville, Gallatin

| Nashville(2), Gallatin

| Davidson, Macon, Smith, Sumner, Trousdale, Wilson, Williamson

! scope="row" | 38

| McEwen

| McEwen, Clarksville

| McEwen, Clarksville, Columbia

| Cheatham, Dickson, Hickman, Houston, Humphreys, Maury, Montgomery, Robertson, Stewart

! scope="row" |39

| Belfast

| Belfast, Lawrenceburg

| Belfast, Lawrenceburg, Murfreesboro

| Bedford, Giles, Lawrence, Lewis, Lincoln, Marshall, Moore, Perry, Rutherford, Wayne

| rowspan=3 | 4 (Jackson)

! scope= "row" | 47

| McKenzie

| McKenzie, Newbern

| McKenzie, Newbern, Trenton

| Benton, Carroll, Decatur, Dyer, Gibson, Henry, Lake, Obion, Weakley

! scope="row" | 48

| Jackson

| Jackson, Bethel Springs

| Jackson, Bethel Springs, Brownsville

| Chester, Crockett, Hardeman, Hardin, Haywood, Henderson, Madison, McNairy

! scope="row" | 49

| Arlington

| Arlington(2)

| Memphis(2), Covington

| Fayette, Lauderdale, Tipton, Shelby

Bureau of Administration

This bureau serves the administrative tasks of the department. It is further divided into the following divisions:

Division of Central Services
Division of Finance
Division of Internal Audit
Division of Human Resources
Division of Strategic Planning
Division of Information Technology
Division of Procurement and Contracts

Bureau of Environment and Planning

This bureau studies environmental effects and ensures compliance with environmental policy. It also collects and analyses data to develop long range project and safety plans. It contains the following divisions:

Environmental Division
Long Range Planning Division
Freight and Logistics Division

Bureau of Engineering

This bureau designs, constructs, and maintains the state's highway system. This Bureau is directed by the Chief Engineer. The majority of the bureau is split into two categories: Design and Operations, with each overseen by an Assistant Chief Engineer.

The Assistant Chief Engineer of Design oversees the following divisions:

Roadway Design Division
Right of Way Division
Structures Division

The Assistant Chief Engineer of Operations is responsible for overseeing the four regional offices. They also oversee the following divisions:

Traffic Operations Division
Materials and Tests Division
Construction Division
Maintenance Division

Additionally there are three independent divisions that report directly to the Chief Engineer:

Bid Analysis and Estimating Office
Program Administration and Development Division
Strategic Transportation Investments Division

Transportation system

TDOT reports the following as Tennessee's transportation system:

Highway system

Bridges: 19,500, including 8,150 state owned bridges and 11,419 locally owned bridges
Interstates: (Centerline Miles)
19 Interstate rest areas
17 Interstate and U.S. Route welcome centers
9 truck weigh stations
State highways, (Centerline Miles)
Total highways, (Lane Miles)

Airport system

74 general aviation
5 commercial
142 heliports

Rail system

18 shortline railroads on of rail
6 major rail lines on of rail

Transit system

28 transit systems serving all 95 counties

Waterways

of main channel navigable waterways
2 ferries

Bicycle and pedestrian system

of greenways, sidewalks, and trails
9 bicycle trails on including a single across state trail totaling
of greenways, sidewalks, and trails

Funding

Funding for the state transportation system in Tennessee comes from a fund that is separate from the state's general fund which operates most of the other state agencies in Tennessee. Transportation revenues come from both federal transportation monies and from state funding resources. Those state funds come from a combination of dollars collected from gas and diesel tax revenues, titling and registration fees. Tennessee operates on a "pay as you go" system by using available revenues resulting in no debt service. Tennessee is one of three states in the nation that does not finance transportation through bonding. Critics of this mechanism claim that it inhibits the ability of the department to sufficiently complete necessary infrastructure improvements.

Controversies

Leadership history

The leaders of the department and its preceding organizations have been:

{| class="toccolours collapsible collapsed" width=75% align="left"

! style="background:#E0CEF2"| <small>Tennessee Department of Transportation Commissioners</small>

Thomas Clarke Rye, A.H. Purdue, Charles, E. Ferris, Authur Crownover, Charles W. Williams, William H. Crox, 1915–1919
W.P. Moore, W.W. House, W.T. Testerman, 1919–1923
J.G. Creveling, Jr., 1923–1925
C.N. Bass, 1925–1928
Harry S. Berry, 1928–1929
R. H. Baker, 1929–1933
F.W. Webster, 1933–1934
H.S. Walters, 1934–1935
Briggs Smith, 1935–1937
M.O. Allen, 1937–1939
C.W. Phillips, 1939–1949
E.W. Eggleston, 1949–1950
Charles Wayland, 1950–1951
C.W. Bond, 1951–1952
Herbert A. McKee, 1952–1953
W.M Leech, 1953–1958
Herbert M. Bates, 1958–1959
D.W. Moulton, 1959–1963
David M. Pack, 1963–1967
E.W. Speight, 1967–1971
Robert F. Smith, 1971–1975
Eddie L. Shaw, 1975–1979
William B. Sansom, 1979–1981
Robert E. Farris, 1981–1985
Dale R. Kelley, 1985–1987
Jimmy M. Evans, 1987–1992
Carl Johnson, 1992–1994
Carl Wood, 1994–1995
Bruce Saltsman, 1995–2003
Gerald F. Nicely, 2003–2011
John Schroer, 2011–2019
Clay Bright, 2019–2021
Joe Galbato [interim], 2021–2022
Butch Eley, 2022–2025
Will Reid, P.E., 2025-present