What to know before hitting the road in East Tennessee for Memorial Day weekend
KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WATE) — As interstate construction work is suspended in Tennessee for Memorial Day weekend and a near-record number of travelers are expected, 6 News anchor Bo Williams has what drivers need to know.
Tennessee Department of Transportation crews and contractors stopped all road construction work that requires lane closures from noon on Friday, May 23, through 6:00 a.m. on Tuesday, May 27. However, drivers will still come across some long-term lane closures on construction projects that will remain in place. This pause is in anticipation of increased holiday travel.
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'We want to do our part to help everyone have an enjoyable and safe holiday weekend and keep traffic flowing as smoothly and efficiently as possible,' said Deputy Governor & TDOT Commissioner Butch Eley. 'We also want to remind drivers that it is the law to move over and slow down for first responders and emergency vehicles, including TDOT HELP trucks that will be on patrol during the holiday weekend. So far this year, we've had 47 incidents where a driver hit a TDOT vehicle or equipment.'
Several roads in Sevierville will be closed on Sunday, May 25, for the Smoky Mountain Thunder Memorial Motorcycle Ride. The following streets will be closed from 7:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.:
Court Avenue from Commerce Street to Cedar Street
Bruce Street from the Sevier County Court House to the Parkway
Joy Street from Court Avenue to the Parkway
Cedar Street from Court Avenue to the Parkway
The following streets will be closed from 10:30 a.m. to 11:30 a.m.:
Bruce Street from the Parkway to Gary Wade Boulevard
Gary Wade Boulevard from Dolly Parton Parkway to Prince Street
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Court Avenue, between Commerce Street and Bruce Street, will also be closed on Monday, May 26, from 8:30 a.m. to 12:30 p.m. for a Memorial Day event being conducted by Sevier County government.
TDOT has also released its weekly construction report for May 23 through May 28. The listing includes lane closures and road construction activities for 24 East Tennessee counties.
TDOT-Weekly-Construction-Report-5-22-25-to-5-28-25Download
More than 948,300 Tennesseans are predicted to travel for Memorial Day, with the majority, 800,250, driving to their destination. That's up from 783,595 in 2024. AAA shared the best and worst times to hit the road over the weekend.
Best and Worst Times to Travel by Car
Date
Worst Travel Time
Best Travel Time
Friday, May 23
12:00 PM – 8:00 PM
Before 11:00 AM
Saturday, May 24
2:00 PM – 6:00 PM
Before 12:00 PM
Sunday, May 25
1:00 PM – 5:00 PM
Before 1:00 PM
(Memorial Day)Monday, May 26
4:00 PM – 7:00 PM
Before 2:00 PM
SECOND HELPING: Miss a Food for Thought segment? See them all here.
If you have any specific questions about road work in your area, email bwilliams@wate.com.
6 News takes a look at upcoming road work and traffic conditions from the 6 News Alert Desk on Friday afternoons. The stream can be watched live on WATE6+. Stay up to date with the latest road work updates here.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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Her Shifting Gears column appears on Substack at Contact her at phoebe@ This article originally appeared on Detroit Free Press: Auto writers are driven to carry out cross-country beagle rescues
