 Foothills Parkway | |
|---|---|
| Route information | |
| Maintained by NPS | |
| Length | 38.6 mi (62.1 km) |
| Existed | February 22, 1944[1]–present |
| Western segment | |
| Length | 33.0 mi[2] (53.1 km) |
| South end |  US 129 in Chilhowee |
| North end |  US 321 in Wears Valley |
| Eastern segment | |
| Length | 5.6 mi[3] (9.0 km) |
| South end | US 321 in Cosby |
| North end |  I-40 near Hartford |
| Foothills Parkway Spur | |
| Length | 4.3 mi[4] (6.9 km) |
| South end |  US 321 / US 441 in Gatlinburg |
| North end | US 321 / US 441 in Pigeon Forge |
| Location | |
| Country | United States |
| State | Tennessee |
| Counties | Blount, Sevier, Cocke |
| Highway system | |
The Foothills Parkway is a national parkway which traverses the foothills of the northern Great Smoky Mountains in East Tennessee, located in the southeastern United States. The 72.1-mile (114 km) parkway will connect U.S. Route 129 (U.S. 129) along the Little Tennessee River in the west with Interstate 40 (I-40) along the Pigeon River in the east.
Portions pass through parts of Blount, Sevier, and Cocke counties. Large sections cross a series of high ridges running roughly parallel to the Tennessee boundary of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park, and offer unobstructed views of the Great Smokies to the south and the Tennessee Valley to the north.
The oldest unfinished highway project in Tennessee,[5] the Foothills Parkway project has been continuously stalled by funding difficulties since Congress authorized its construction in 1944. As of 2018, just over one-half of the parkway has been completed and opened to vehicular traffic, although the right of way for the full length has been acquired.
Sections 8E & 8F (including the "Missing Link") of the parkway was announced completed on November 8, 2018 and opened to the public on Saturday, November 10, 2018, adding 16.1 finished miles.[6] Previously, the longest open section (8H and 8G) consisted of a 16.9-mile (27.2 km) leg traversing the western flank of Chilhowee Mountain in Blount county, connecting U.S. 129 along the Chilhowee Lake impoundment of the Little Tennessee River with U.S. 321 in the town of Walland. The other open section (8A) is a 5.6-mile (9.0 km) stretch traversing Green Mountain in Cocke county, connecting U.S. 321 in Cosby with I-40 in the Pigeon River valley.
The Gatlinburg Bypass, which traverses the eastern flank of Cove Mountain between the north end of Gatlinburg and the national park, connecting to the Great Smoky Mountains Parkway at each end, is also considered part of the parkway. The Great Smoky Mountains Parkway (U.S. 441) from Gatlinburg north to Pigeon Forge is also National Park Service land, connecting the bypass to the right of way for future sections (8D and 8C) of the Foothills Parkway at the southern city limit of Pigeon Forge.
The parkways are managed by the National Park Service as part of Great Smoky Mountains National Park. Unlike other national parkways, they are not a separate unit of the national park system. As with other NPS roads, construction (including repaving) is handled by the Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) through the Federal Lands Transportation Program (FLTP) partnership.
- ^ "The Foothills Parkway: Completing the "Missing Link"" (PDF). National Park Service. Retrieved November 29, 2014.
- ^ "Foothills Parkway Western Segment" (Map). Google Maps. Retrieved November 26, 2014.
- ^ "Foothills Parkway Eastern Segment" (Map). Google Maps. Retrieved November 26, 2014.
- ^ "Foothills Parkway Spur" (Map). Google Maps. Retrieved November 26, 2014.
- ^ C. Brenden Martin, "Foothills Parkway." Tennessee Encyclopedia of History and Culture Online, 2002. Retrieved: 17 November 2007.
- ^ Good, Whitney (2018-11-08). "Final bridge completed on Missing Link section of Foothills Parkway". WATE. Retrieved 2018-11-08.