City of Knoxville, TN
12/16/2025 | News release | Distributed by Public on 12/16/2025 06:37
Gay Street Bridge Is Now Open
Today (Dec. 16, 2025), the Gay Street Bridge reopened to pedestrians and bicyclists - on time and within budget.
"This is a happy turning point," Mayor Indya Kincannon said. "After 18 months, we're reopening the bridge to pedestrians and bicyclists - and that goes a very long way in reconnecting downtown and our South Waterfront."
The Tennessee Department of Transportation ordered the closure of the bridge in June 2024. A TDOT inspection revealed a compromised element, and two subsequent inspections pinpointed defects in the 127-year-old bridge.
The City worked with a team of experts - nationally-renowned bridge design consultants Gresham Smith and a trusted, experienced local contractor, Charles Blalock & Sons Inc. - to stabilize the bridge and to reconfigure the north end of the bridge where Gay Street and Hill Avenue intersect.
"I was as shocked and saddened as anybody when TDOT told us to close the bridge," Mayor Kincannon said. "Like many others, I had hoped that the bridge could continue to carry the weight of vehicles - but that just wasn't possible, or responsible, from a safety standpoint.
"Public safety was always the top priority, overriding everything else. I'm proud of our team for doing the bridge stabilization repairs the right way."
The City invested more than $2.7 million to repair the bridge while also pursuing a $1 million Federal Highway Administration grant to study long-term options for possibly replacing the antiquated Gay Street Bridge with a modern new bridge.
Motorized vehicles are no longer allowed on the bridge.
Visit www.KnoxvilleTN.gov/GayStBridge for a list of what's allowed and what's not allowed.
The Gay Street Bridge opened in 1898 to accommodate horses and buggies, with an expected service life of 75 years. It is now in its 127th year.
At the north end of the bridge, there's a newly designed entrance at Gay Street and Hill Avenue that maximizes safety for bicyclists, pedestrians and motorists as they share that intersection. Vehicle turn lanes that are no longer needed have been removed, creating space for new landscape areas with benches, trees, shrubs and perennial flowers.
The City will host a celebration with community members, downtown and South Waterfront merchants and others in January.
"This is a happy turning point," Mayor Indya Kincannon said. "After 18 months, we're reopening the bridge to pedestrians and bicyclists - and that goes a very long way in reconnecting downtown and our South Waterfront."
The Tennessee Department of Transportation ordered the closure of the bridge in June 2024. A TDOT inspection revealed a compromised element, and two subsequent inspections pinpointed defects in the 127-year-old bridge.
The City worked with a team of experts - nationally-renowned bridge design consultants Gresham Smith and a trusted, experienced local contractor, Charles Blalock & Sons Inc. - to stabilize the bridge and to reconfigure the north end of the bridge where Gay Street and Hill Avenue intersect.
"I was as shocked and saddened as anybody when TDOT told us to close the bridge," Mayor Kincannon said. "Like many others, I had hoped that the bridge could continue to carry the weight of vehicles - but that just wasn't possible, or responsible, from a safety standpoint.
"Public safety was always the top priority, overriding everything else. I'm proud of our team for doing the bridge stabilization repairs the right way."
The City invested more than $2.7 million to repair the bridge while also pursuing a $1 million Federal Highway Administration grant to study long-term options for possibly replacing the antiquated Gay Street Bridge with a modern new bridge.
Motorized vehicles are no longer allowed on the bridge.
Visit www.KnoxvilleTN.gov/GayStBridge for a list of what's allowed and what's not allowed.
The Gay Street Bridge opened in 1898 to accommodate horses and buggies, with an expected service life of 75 years. It is now in its 127th year.
At the north end of the bridge, there's a newly designed entrance at Gay Street and Hill Avenue that maximizes safety for bicyclists, pedestrians and motorists as they share that intersection. Vehicle turn lanes that are no longer needed have been removed, creating space for new landscape areas with benches, trees, shrubs and perennial flowers.
The City will host a celebration with community members, downtown and South Waterfront merchants and others in January.
City of Knoxville, TN published this content on December 16, 2025, and is solely responsible for the information contained herein. Distributed via Public Technologies (PUBT), unedited and unaltered, on December 16, 2025 at 12:37 UTC. If you believe the information included in the content is inaccurate or outdated and requires editing or removal, please contact us at [email protected]