KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Knoxville Mayor Madeline Rogero says she supports safety improvements to Chapman Highway, three months after 22-year-old Pierce Corcoran was killed in a head-on crash on the roadway.
"There are significant safety improvements that need to be made on Chapman Highway," said Rogero in an interview with 10News. "I understand that we have to do whatever we can to make that roadway safer."
76 people have died on the road between Knoxville and Sevierville since 2005. Newly released data from the Knoxville Regional Transportation Planning Organization shows 20 of those deaths occurred within the six miles of road in the City of Knoxville. The rest happened over the remaining 16 miles of Chapman Highway that wind through Knox, Blount, and Sevier County.
Corcoran's death reignited a decades-long debate about safety on the road. In the final days of 2018, Pierce Corcoran was killed in a head-on crash on Chapman Highway. More than three months later, the conversation on how to improve safety on the road is far from over.
"I can't imagine the pain that they're going through now," said Rogero. "I have two granddaughters around the age of Pierce who drive Chapman Highway every day."
In a more than hour long conversation with 10News, Mayor Rogero made clear she intends to focus on improving Chapman Highway instead of building other roads around it. An extension to James White Parkway was proposed several years ago, but ultimately was taken off the list of improvement projects. The plan remains dead, with both TDOT and Rogero saying there are no plans to revive it.
"The biggest problems are speed and road design. Congestion and volume is not our problem in our section of Chapman Highway," said Rogero. "If I thought that an extension would save the life of one of my grandchildren, if I thought that was the answer, I would be pushing for the extension.
A 10 News Investigation found those in charge of making the road safe are at odds over how to improve it. Tennessee Department of Transportation spokesperson Mark Nagi told 10 News in February that the road will never be as safe as it can be without reducing the number of cars that drive on it.
"The position of the department remains that this is a roadway that you need to get a lot of cars off of," said Nagi.
Rogero says engineers that work for the city disagree with that assessment.
"TDOT engineers want to build an extension," said Rogero. "Our engineers say that's not necessary. So yes, there's a professional disagreement there among engineers."
With an estimated price tag of more than $150 million for the extension, Rogero says the money is better spent on making improvements to Chapman Highway. Rogero opposed the extension in 2014, saying it would have cut through the South Knoxville Urban wilderness, an area she now says has an estimated $10 million in private investment.
"The end of the James White Parkway is now the gateway park to the urban wilderness," said Rogero. "We all need to focus on Chapman Highway and make it as safe as we can for those of us who live here and for the folks who travel through it to get to one of our sister counties."
As the Knoxville Regional Transportation Planning Organization prepares to hold a public comment session on April 16, 10 News has learned City Councilmember Stephanie Welch will introduce a resolution to support TDOT's implementation of safety improvements, including widening the road and adding sidewalks in some parts.
That would include a $45 million project set for 2023, well after Rogero is set to leave her office as Mayor of Knoxville.