News Talk 94.1/AM 1600 Where The Upper Cumberland Talks
Fentress County’s Glenobey Road has reopened, with construction completed earlier this week.
The 825-foot section of road had become unsafe, washing out and sliding off the side of the hill. Fentress County Road Superintendent Ryan Reed called the improvements elaborate.
“This same repair has been used around several roads in Fentress County,” Reed said. “Highway 52 for one. Highway 85 for another. This is just areas that we’re seeing a permanent fix, so we expect nothing less on this one.”
Reed said they have attached the road directly into the bedrock and added retention walls to solve the issue. Reed said the funds saved will be put toward repaving the entire eight-mile road in the spring.
The county used a $4 million grant and managed to stay under budget on the project.
“With the help of T-DOT and being able to use state contracts saved us a lot of money than having to bid it through private contractors,” Reed said. “T-DOT really stepped up and helped us with that.”
The Glenobey Road project started back in August. He said Glenobey Road is an important route through Fentress County.
“It’s a small winding county road, but it’s also a bypass,” Reed said. “You can actually by pass the city of Jamestown as you’re going from 127 to Livingston. It’s a vital pass. If anything ever happens on Highway 52, that’s the only path to get to Jamestown.”
Glenobey Road was closed during the duration of construction. Reed called the closure an unfortunate inconvenience.
“There was still access to every house in the community,” Reed said. “It was more of the inconvenience of having to drive a few more miles instead of being able to go straight over the mountain.”
