Today, the Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) thanks the General Assembly for dedicating $400 million in the state’s Fiscal Year (FY) 2027 budget to support vital infrastructure improvements. The non-recurring dollars will support key investments in maintenance of existing assets and allow TDOT to accelerate, leverage, and add new capacity-adding projects to the department’s fiscally-constrained 10-Year Plan.
These funds build on the $4 billion in historic investments and contracting authority granted to TDOT by the Tennessee General Assembly over the past three years, reinforcing the need to build efficiently and effectively to support Tennessee’s exceptional growth. Today, TDOT also released its updated 10-Year Plan to include these added funds for capacity-adding projects outlined in the FY27 budget.
“As Tennessee continues to grow, we remain focused on modernizing infrastructure to move commerce and commuters across our state,” said Governor Bill Lee. “I thank the General Assembly for delivering significant funding to support TDOT’s 10-year plan and update current assets, all without raising taxes or new debt.”
These additional General Fund dollars increase TDOT’s ability to deliver a higher level of service across Tennessee while modernizing the state’s transportation network. These funds are planned for state-of-good-repair projects that ensure the state’s existing infrastructure is properly maintained for years to come, as well as critical bridge investments and additional capacity-adding projects.
The $400 million one-time, non-recurring funds will be allocated as follows:
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- $50 million for maintenance
- $150 million for Bridge Preservation Program
- Supporting 50 off-system (locally owned) bridge replacement projects named in the 2017 IMPROVE Act
- $200 million for capacity-adding projects
The updated 2026 10-Year Plan contains 93 site-specific projects, including 22 projects added with this update, six of which are made possible through partnership with local government agencies through TDOT’s Statewide Partnership Program. Since the advent of the 10-Year Plan in FY24, TDOT has delivered 48 capacity-adding projects across rural, suburban, and urban communities, totaling $2.73 billion of investment in Tennessee’s transportation network.
“This 10-Year Plan shows that we’re keeping our promise of what gets started, gets finished,” said TDOT Commissioner Will Reid, P.E. “TDOT is proud to deliver 100% of its 10-Year Plan projects for the second year in a row. We will continue to accelerate projects, improve safety, and prepare Tennessee’s transportation system for the future, thanks to Governor Lee and this General Assembly’s unprecedented investments in transportation.”
TDOT reevaluates and updates the 10-Year Plan annually to account for future years of traditional state and federal funding, as well as General Fund investments made in the state budget each year. Every project is carefully assessed based on multiple factors. TDOT’s prioritization process evaluates each project based on safety, congestion, system preservation, deliverability, and economic and community impact. This thoughtful, transparent, and accountable approach allows TDOT to move projects forward more efficiently. For more information about the plan and strategy, visit TDOT’s Build With Us website.
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