As temperatures drop and paving season comes to a close for the year, Mayor Tim Kelly and Chattanooga Public Works announced that 2023 was the administration’s most productive year in terms of repairing roadways, filling potholes and paving.
“When I came into office, I committed to double the city’s repaving budget throughout my term, and that $30 million investment to date continues to deliver increasing returns for Chattanoogans. Our road condition scores have stopped their yearslong decline, and we’re going to continue the work to keep road quality moving in the right direction,” said Mayor Kelly.
In 2023, Chattanooga Public Works paved 66 lane miles of roadways and repaired more than 18,000 potholes, cracks and divots in 2023, beating 2022’s performance of 60 lane miles and nearly 16,000 potholes.
In total, the Kelly Administration has resurfaced about 200 lane miles and repaired more than 50,000 potholes, cracks and divots. Lane miles are a measurement of the total length and lane count of a roadway and are calculated by multiplying the centerline miles by the number of lanes, excluding shoulders, officials said.
“Folks have to be able to trust us to do the basics right if we want them to trust us to make big, significant investments in developments, parks, and more,” said the City’s Chief Operating Officer Ryan Ewalt. “Paving and road repair is the easiest way we can prove to every Chattanoogan that we are working hard to make their lives better and easier, which is what local governments should strive to do every day.”
Paving season ends during the cold weather months because the paint used for restriping cannot be applied properly when the roads are too cold. Paving season will re-commence in the spring, when work on roads like S. Holtzclaw Avenue, Douglas Street and Curtis Street is scheduled to begin. To see a full list of road projects, visit cha.city/paving.
"Since the first day of his administration, Mayor Tim Kelly has been determined to make investments into roads that have been long neglected," officials said. "In The Kelly Administration’s first year, only two-thirds of city roads were considered to be in good-to-excellent condition. As a result of the declining condition of our city roadways, The Kelly Administration doubled the annual investment into paving and road repairs from $5 million annually to $10 million annually. This investment allowed the administration to create the position of pothole inspector and bring on an additional pothole repair truck."