HARPER
HARPER AUTO4@ SQUARE THE WB I ARE TEN NEWS STARTS NOW4@
THIRTY EIGHT INCHES OF A
SEPARATE YOU FROM ONCOMING
TRAFFIC. OUR CAMERAS HAVE
CAPTURED THE CRASH IS
THE LOSS THE PAIN ON CHAPMAN
HIGHWAY FOR THE PAST4@ SIX
DECADES. LAST DECEMBER TWENTY
TWO YEAR OLD PIERCE CORCORAN
WAS KILLED IN A CRASH ON THAT
ROAD HIS DEATH4@ WAS H4@ER HAS
REIGNITED A DEBATE ABOUT
SAFETY THERE A DEBATE THAT
HAS NEVER BEEN RESOLVED
THE TENNESSEE DEPARTMENT OF
TRANSPORTATION WORKS WITH
LOCAL GOVERNMENTS SHOULD MAKE
THESE SAFETY IMPROVEMENTS IN
TEN YEARS REPORTER MARCELLA
HER SHOWS US AFTER YEARS OF
TALKS IN MANY POTENTIAL
SOLUTIONS. WE STILL DISAGREE
ON WHETHER TENNESSEE
DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION
BELIEVES THERE ARE TOO MANY
CARS ON CHAPMAN HIGHWAY AND
ONLY BUILDING A NEW ROAD WILL
MAKE IT A SAFE IS IT CAN BE
THE CITY OF KNOXVILLE ON
THE OTHER HAND SAYS CHAPMAN
IS NO MORE DANGEROUS THAN ANY
OTHER UH TWENTY COMES TO
MAKING CHAP4@MAN4@ HIGHWAY SAFY
TH4@ERE'S NO CLEAR ANSWER ON
HOW TO DO IT. THIS IS A
ROADWAY THAT4@ YOU NEED TO GET
A LOT OF CARS4@ OFF IT'S NOT
PARTICULARLY UNSAFE COMPARED
TO OTHER FOLLOWING
THE DECEMBER4@ DEATH OF PIERCE
CORCORAN IN THE HEAD ON CRASH4@
ON CHAPMAN HIGHWAY. WE TOOK
OUR QUESTIONS TO THE PEOPLE
CHARGED WITH MAKING THE ROADS
SAFE. AFTER YEARS OF TALKING
ABOUT HOW TO IMPROVE SAFETY
OF THE CHANGES MADE ANY
DIFFERENCE. WE'RE DOING WHAT4@
WE CAN WITH CHAPMAN HIGHWAY
BUT WE DON'T BELIEVE THAT4@
WITHOUT GETTING A LOT OF CARS
OFF OF THAT ROADWAY THAT WE
CAN MAKE HIGHWAYS SAFER
THE DOT SAYS THE MILLIONS OF
DOLLARS SPENT ON IMPROVEMENTS
OVER THE YEARS STILL ARE NOT
ENOUGH THEY SAY NOT EVEN A
FORTY FIVE4@ MILLION DOLLAR
PROJECT PLANNED FOR4@ TWENTY
TWENTY THREE WILL BE
SUFFICIENT TO ENSURE THE ROAD
IS SAFE FOR YEARS TO COME. IT
WAS NOT MEANT TO HAVE
THE TRAFFIC THAT YOU SEE ON
CHAPMAN HIGHWAY TODAY MORE
THAN THIRTY THOUSAND CARS
TRAVEL CHAPMAN4@ HIGHWAY EVERY
DAY. THE MAJORITY OF THEM
WEAVE THROUGH SOUTH KNOXVILLE
WE WANTED TO SPEAK WITH
KNOXVILLE MAYOR4@ MADELINE
HEROINE ABOUT WHAT ACTION SHE
BELIEVES NEED4@ TO BE TAKEN BUT
THE MAYOR'S PEOPLE SAID SHE
4@ DIDN'T HAVE TIME HERE BECAUSE
TO THIS PROJECT I I I IN TWO
THOUSAND AND FOURTEEN
THE HEROES OPPOSITION LED TO
T DOT SCRAPPING A PLAN THEY
BELIEVE WOULD HELP IMPROVE
SAFETY ON THE ROADWAY
THE HEROINE SOUTH KNOXVILLE
RESIDENT ARGUED4@ THE PROPOSED
EXTENSION OF JAMES WHITE
PARKWAY T4@HROUGH SOUTH
KNOXVILLE WOULD ENDANGER
4@ THE URBAN WILDERNESS SHE HAD
WORKED 4@TO ESTABLISH WE ARE
NOT THE BRIDGE4@ TO NOWHERE
ANYMORE WE ARE NOW
THE BRIDGETON URBAN4@
RECREATION DESTINY THE DOC
SAID HE WOULD HELP TAKE CARS
OFF AN ALREADY OVERCROWDED
CHAPMAN HIGHWAY IN TWO4@
THOUSAND AND FOURTEEN BEN
COMMISS4@IONER JOHN SCHROEDER
SENT A LETTER TO4@ MAYOR A HERO
OUTLINING THE SAFETY
DEFICIENCIES OF4@ THE ROAD
RIDING IN PART THE ONLY TRUE
SOLUTION IDENTIFIED BY OUR4@
TRAFFIC ENGINEERS WAS
THE CONSTRUCTION OF AN
ALTERNATE ROUTE SINCE TWO
THOUSAND AND FOURTEEN WHEN
THAT LETTER WAS SENT4@ TWENTY
FIVE PEOPLE HAVE DIED ON
4@ CHAPMAN HIGHWAY. THE CITY
STILL DISAGREES4@ WITH THE DOTS
ASSESSMENT. I DON'T THINK
ANOTHER ISSUE IS4@ IS NEEDED IS
CHAPM4@AN HIGHWAY S C FIZZY CAN
BE4@ OH I D4@ON'T THINK I MEAN
CHAPM4@AN HIGHWAY S C FIZZY CAN BE4@ OH I D4@ON'T THINK I MEANT
AND CERTAINLY NOT A SIGHT AS
IT CAN BE THE JAMES WHITE
PARKWAY EXTENSION WOULD HAVE
CONNECTED4@ KNOXVILLE IN SEVIER
COUNTY BYPASSING CHAPMAN
HIGHWAY. SEVIER COUNTY MAYOR
LARRY WATERS SUPPORTED
THE PROJECT A ROAD CAN BE
BUILT AND IT
THE ACCOMMODATING TO
THE WILDERNESS PROJECT CITY
4@ KNOXVILLE HAVE I MEAN THE TWO
TO MAY WERE NEVER MUTUALLY4@
EXCLUSIVE. OVER THE PAST4@
FOURTEEN YEARS THERE HAVE
BEEN SIXTY FIVE FATAL CRASHES4@
IN A ROUGHLY TWENTY TWO MILE
STRETCH OF CHAPMAN HIGHWAY
FROM KNOXVILLE TO SEVERE BILL
ACCORDING TO THE TENNESSEE
DEPARTMENT OF SAFETY AND
HOMELAND SECURITY SEVENTY SIX
PEOPLE HAVE4@ LOST THEIR LIVES
IN THOSE WRECKS ONE OF THEM
WAS THE SON OF WENDY4@ AND DJ
CORPORATE IT'S GOTTA BE
LOOKED INTO IN AND CLEAN IT'S
BEEN TALKED ABOUT FOR YEARS4@
INTHE POINT EIGHT SEVEN MILES
FROM LAKE VIEW DRIVE TO
CHAPMAN FOR CROSSING THERE
ARE SIXTY FIVE DRIVEWAYS INTO
TRAFFIC SIGNALS. THERE'S ALSO
NO TURN LANE IN THE PAST
THREE YEARS THERE WERE ONE
HUNDRED AND4@ THIRTEEN CRASHES
BUT THAT'S NOT THE SPOT WITH
THE MOST CRASHES AND THE LESS
THAN TWO MILES BETWEEN BLUNT
AVENUE IN DOVER FOR A DRIVE
IN FOUR HUNDRED AND TWENTY
FOUR CRASHES IN THE SAME TIME
PERIOD4@. THAT'S TWO HUNDRED
AND THIRTY SIX CRASHES PER
MILE. WELL ABOVE THE STATE
AVERAGE FOR ROADS OF THE SAME
STRUCTURE. IT'S A DANGEROUS
THERE'S EIGHT INCHES OF PAINT
SEPARATE HER FROM ONCOMING
TRAFFIC WHILE MAYOR HAROLD
WOULD NOT SPEAK WITH US ABOUT
CHAPMAN HIGHWAY WE HAVE
LEARNED THAT SHE MET WITH
T4@HE CORCORAN FAMILY FOLLOWING
THE CRASH FOR OFFICE AS THEY
ARE CONSIDERING LOWERING
THE SPEED LIMIT IN CERTAIN
PARTS OF THE ROAD BUT SAY
THOSE