Tennessee State Route 155

State Route 155 (SR 155), mostly designated as Briley Parkway, is a major freeway and parkway beltway around Nashville, Tennessee. It is 30.59 mi (49.2 km) long.

State Route 155
Briley Parkway
Thompson Lane
White Bridge Pike
Woodmont Boulevard
Route information
Maintained by TDOT
Length30.59 mi[1] (49.23 km)
Major junctions
Loop around Nashville
 
Location
CountiesDavidson
Highway system
← I-155→ SR 156

Briley Pkwy., named in honor of former Nashville mayor Beverly Briley, passes the Grand Ole Opry House, Opry Mills, and the Opryland Hotel east of Nashville. It crosses the Cumberland River twice, once near Madison, and again on the west side of Nashville, near the Riverbend Maximum Security Institution and John C. Tune Airport. On the southeast portion of the loop, Briley Pkwy. crosses Interstate 40 and passes Nashville International Airport.

Route description

Briley Parkway
A sign off Exit 26 offering a choice between SR 155 northbound and SR 155 southbound. Similar signs are common on roads that junction with SR 155.

Briley Parkway consists of the northern loop of SR 155 from I-40 on the west side of Nashville to I-24 southeast of downtown Nashville, which makes up about two thirds of the length of the highway. The entirety of Briley Pkwy. is a controlled access highway, except for the 3.5 miles (5.6 km) segment between I-24 and I-40, including the interchange with US 41/70S (Murfreesboro Pike), which is limited access. Between I-40 near the Nashville International Airport and Ellington Parkway (US 31 E), Briley Pkwy. is four lanes each way. The rest of the Pkwy. is two lanes each way.

Briley Pkwy. begins at a full y interchange with I-40 in west Nashville (although the route continues to the south), and runs north at this point along the northeastern urban boundary of the city of Nashville. The first interchange is with Cockrill Bend Boulevard, which connects to the Riverbend Maximum Security Institution. The parkway then crosses the Cumberland River on the Andrew B. Gibson Bridge, and has an interchange with County Hospital Road near the University School of Nashville. About 1.5 miles (2.4 km) later is an interchange with SR 12 and the parkway curves sharply to the northeast, running mostly east to west beyond this point. The next interchange, about 3 miles (4.8 km) later, is with US 41 Alternate near the neighborhood of Haynes Estates, and about 1 mile (1.6 km) later is an interchange with US 431 (Whites Creek Pike). About 1.5 miles (2.4 km), Briley Pkwy. interchanges with I-24 in a cloverleaf interchange, and about 1⁄4 mile (0.40 km) beyond this is an interchange with Brick Church Pike. Beyond this point, Briley Pkwy. continues for another mile, and has a complicated interchange with US 31W/41 and I-65, and U.S. 31E southbound (Ellington Parkway) less than 1⁄2 mile (0.80 km) later. At these interchanges, US 31W/41 and I-65 southbound are accessible together from both directions, and I-65 northbound and Ellington Pkwy are accessible together from the westbound lanes. From the eastbound lanes, I-65 northbound and Ellington Pkwy. are accessible independently.

At this point, Briley Pkwy. widens to eight lanes, and begins a brief concurrency with US 31E, which splits off as Gallatin Road at an interchange 0.6 miles (0.97 km) later. The highway then crosses the Cumberland River again, and sharply to the southeast, and has an interchange with McGavock Pike, which is a connector road to the Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention Center, Music Valley, and the site of the Grand Ole Opry. Entering a short straightaway, Briley Pkwy. runs almost directly north-south at this point, and less than 1.5 miles (2.4 km) later has a trumpet interchange with a connector road to Opry Mills Mall. The next interchange, about 1⁄2 mile (0.80 km) later, is an interchange with Two Rivers Parkway. The parkway then shifts slightly to the west, before curving sharply to the east, and then to the west again, in somewhat of a "c-shaped" curve, before reaching an interchange with US 70 (Lebanon Pike) just under 2.5 miles (4.0 km) later. The route shifts slightly again, maintaining its general north-south direction, and reaches the next interchange, which is with Elm Hill Pike slightly over 1 mile (1.6 km) later. The parkway then curves to the southwest, and reaches a cloverstack interchange with Interstate 40 near the Nashville International Airport where the route reduces to two lanes in each direction and the freeway segment ends. Continuing as a limited access highway, Briley Pkwy. has intersections with three major thoroughfares before reaching a trumpet interchange with Airways Boulevard, a connector to the airport. The route continues for another mile, next to an industrial site adjacent to the airport before reaching an interchange with US 41/70S (Murfreesboro Pike). Running northeast–southwest, Briley Pkwy. continues for another 1.5 miles (2.4 km), crossing a railroad, before reaching the interchange with I-24, a partial cloverleaf interchange which also includes access to a restricted connector road to an Averitt Express yard. At this interchange the limited access segment ends, although the Briley Pkwy. designation does not end until an intersection about 0.4 miles (0.64 km) later, where SR 155 becomes Thompson Lane.

White Bridge Road/Thompson Lane

The segment of SR 155 designated as White Bridge Road begins at the interchange with I-40 in west Nashville, where the route continues north as controlled-access Briley Parkway. This entire section of SR 155 is a four-lane major arterial thoroughfare with many intersections. Beyond this point, the route immediately has an intersection with US 70, and runs directly north-south before curving to the southeast over 1 mile (1.6 km) later near Nashville State Community College. The route the crosses a railroad and intersects with US 70S (Harding Road). At this intersection, the route becomes two-lane Woodmont Boulevard, and the SR 155 designation ends, although many maps show this segment as being part of SR 155. About 2⁄3 mile (1.1 km) later the road curves to the southeast, and begins running east-west nearly perfectly straight before reaching an intersection with US 431 (Hillsboro Pike). About 1.5 miles (2.4 km) later, the route widens back to four lanes and has an interchange with US 31 (Franklin Road), where the route becomes Thompson Lane, and SR 155 begins again, this time with a secondary designation. The route then crosses I-65 and intersects with Powell Avenue, which contains signs directing drivers to I-65. Continuing east, SR 155 crosses a railyard and about 1.25 miles (2.01 km) later intersects with US 31A/41A (Nolensville Pike). About 1 mile (1.6 km) later, the route reaches an intersection where Thompson Lane splits off to the north and the route becomes Briley Parkway, and the interchange with I-24 is less than 1⁄2 mile (0.80 km) beyond this point.

History

Briley Parkway was initially a city project, and construction began in 1961.[2] The 2.2 miles (3.5 km) segment of Briley Parkway between the intersection with Thompson Lane and Vultee Boulevard just north of US 41/70S opened to traffic in late October 1965.[3] The segment between I-40 and US 70 in the Donelson neighborhood opened to traffic on July 1, 1967.[4] Most of the segment of Briley Pkwy. between I-65 and I-24 in northeast Nashville was built in the 1960s, but the last section was not completed until March 30, 1978, with the opening of the approximately 2 miles (3.2 km) segment between I-65 and Gallatin Road.[5]

In 1983, TDOT took over Briley Parkway.[2] The 4.2 miles (6.8 km) segment between SR 12 (Ashland City Highway) and US 431 (Whites Creek Pike) opened on December 15, 1993.[6] Construction of the last section of Briley Pkwy., the 1.6 miles (2.6 km) segment between I-24 and I-65, began in November 1995, and opened to traffic on December 19, 1997.[7]

Briley Pkwy. between US 31E (Ellington Parkway) and I-40 in eastern Nashville was widened from four to eight lanes in multiple projects. The first project, which began in early 1996, widened the route between Two Rivers Parkway and McGavock Pike, and was completed in May 1998.[8] The contract for the stretch located between US 31E (Gallatin Pike) and McGavock Pike was awarded in October 2001. The next phase, between Elm Hill Pike and US 70, was awarded in August 2002, and the next phase, between US 70 and Two Rivers Parkway, was awarded in December 2002.[9] The final phase involved widening the parkway between I-40 and Elm Hill Pike and reconstructing the interchange with I-40, which was completed in December 2006.[10] Initially expected to be complete by June 30, 2005, the widening projects ran into multiple issues, including opposition from nearby residents, issues with right-of-way acquisition, and cost overruns, and were not completed until 2007.[9]

The interchange at I-40 and White Bridge Road was reconstructed in two phases. Phase one was completed ahead of schedule in 2005; phase two, ramps to and from Briley and separating it from the White Bridge Road/I-40 interchange, was completed by 2011.[11]

Major intersections

Counterclockwise (CCW) reads down, clockwise (CW) reads up. The entire route is in Davidson County.

LocationmikmExitDestinationsNotes
Nashville–Oak Hill line0.000.00— US 31 (Franklin Road / SR 6)Interchange; unmarked exit 1
Nashville US 31A / US 41A (Nolensville Pike / SR 11)
3 I-24 – Chattanooga, NashvilleCW end of freeway; signed as exits 3A (east) and 3B (west); I-24 exit 54
—Averitt Express Drive – Authorized vehicles onlyCW access via exit 3B
4 US 41 / US 70S (Murfreesboro Road / SR 1)CCW end of freeway
5Airways BoulevardInterchange
6 I-40 – International Airport, Knoxville, NashvilleCW end of freeway; signed as exits 6A (east) and 6B (west); I-40 exit 204
7Elm Hill Pike
8 US 70 (Lebanon Pike / SR 24) – Donelson
10Two Rivers Parkway
11Opry Mills DriveServes Opry Mills, General Jackson Showboat and Grand Ole Opry House
121912Music Valley Drive / McGavock Pike – Opryland Hotel, Convention Center
14 US 31E north (Gallatin Road / SR 6) – MadisonCW end of US 31E/SR 6 overlap; signed CCW as exits 14A (north) and 14B (south)
15 US 31E south (Ellington Parkway / SR 6) / Briarville RoadCCW end of US 31E/SR 6 overlap; signed as exits 15A (Briarville Rd.) and 15B (US 31E)
16A I-65 north – LouisvilleCCW exit signed as exit 15C and is part of exit 15; I-65 exit 90
16B US 31W / US 41 (Dickerson Pike / SR 11) / I-65 south – NashvilleCCW exit signed as exit 16; I-65 exit 90
17Brick Church Pike
18 I-24 – Clarksville, NashvilleSigned as exits 18A (west) and 18B (east); I-24 exit 43
19 US 431 (Whites Creek Pike / SR 65)
21 US 41A (Clarksville Pike / SR 112)CCW exit signed as exits 21A (north) and 21B (south)
24 SR 12 – Ashland City
25County Hospital Road
26Centennial BoulevardCW exit signed as exits 26A (east) and 26B (west); serves John C. Tune Airport and Riverbend Maximum Security Institution
27 I-40 – Nashville, MemphisCCW end of freeway; signed as exits 27A (east) and 27B (west); no CW exit numbers; I-40 exit 215
US 70 (Charlotte Pike / SR 24)
US 70S (Harding Road / SR 1)
US 431 (Hillsboro Pike / SR 106)
Nashville–Oak Hill line30.5949.23 SR 155 east (Thompson Lane)CCW continuation (see above)
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

See also
  • List of Tennessee state highways

References
  1. DeLorme Street Atlas 2007, Toggle Measure Tool. Retrieved on 2007-06-29.
  2. Hefner, David (December 13, 1997). "Briley comes full circle". The Tennessean. p. 1A, 2A. Retrieved 2020-09-03 – via Newspapers.com.
  3. Korpan, Steve (November 3, 1965). "Briley Parkway Links City". The Nashville Tennessean. Nashville, Tennessee. p. 19. Retrieved 2019-05-03 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. Whitt, Wayne (May 31, 1967). "I-Roads Funds Needed". The Nashville Tennessean. p. 1, 2. Retrieved 2020-04-30 – via Newspapers.com.
  5. "Briley Parkway I-65 Connection Opening Today". The Tennessean. Nashville, Tennessee. March 30, 1978. p. 22. Retrieved 2019-05-03.
  6. Tran, Tini (December 14, 1993). "Briley circle closes in on city". The Tennessean. p. 1. Retrieved 3 September 2020 – via Newspapers.com.
  7. Ferguson, Carrie (December 20, 1997). "Briley (finally) parkway". The Tennessean. Retrieved 2020-09-03 – via Newspapers.com.
  8. Rivers, Margo (November 5, 2002). "Lebanon-Two Rivers segment next of Briley projects". The Tennessean. p. 53. Retrieved 2020-03-18 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. Schrade, Brad (February 6, 2005). "Road to the end of Briley work is a year longer". The Tennessean. p. A1, A9. Retrieved 2020-03-18 – via Newspapers.com.
  10. "Interstate 40 Widening Project in Nashville Completed Five Months Early". TDOT Press Release. Nashville, Tennessee. January 22, 2007. Retrieved 2019-05-05.
  11. "Archived copy". Archived from the original on 2009-07-08. Retrieved 2009-07-06.CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
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