Interstate 24

{{lengths table|length_ref=}}

|-

|IL

|{{convert|38.73|mi|km|disp=table}}

|-

|KY

|{{convert|93.37|mi|km|disp=table}}

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|TN

|{{convert|180.16|mi|km|disp=table}}

|-

|GA

|{{convert|4.10|mi|km|disp=table}}

|-

|Total

|{{convert|316.36|mi|km|disp=table}}

|}

I-24 runs diagonally from I-57 south of Marion, Illinois, to I-75 at Chattanooga, Tennessee. In Kentucky, the road passes through Paducah and Eddyville. Its length in Tennessee is longer than the other three states combined. There are two segments that are separated by the segment in Georgia. Through Georgia, it carries the unsigned State Route 409 (SR 409) designation for internal Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) purposes.{{cite GDOT map |year= 2002 |access-date=April 6, 2017}}

I-24 begins at exit 44 on I-57 in southern Williamson County, near the community of Pulleys Mill.{{cite map |author = Illinois Department of Transportation |author-link = Illinois Department of Transportation |title = Williamson County General Highway Map |url = http://www.dot.state.il.us/maps/county/williamson.pdf |year = 2010 |location = Springfield |publisher = Illinois Department of Transportation |access-date = January 9, 2011 |archive-date = March 6, 2012 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120306041737/http://www.dot.state.il.us/maps/county/williamson.pdf |url-status = live }} The highway heads southeast into rural Johnson County, bypassing Goreville to the east. It reaches an exit at Tunnel Hill Road, which serves Goreville and Tunnel Hill. The highway continues south to its next exit at US Route 45 (US 45) north of Vienna. It reaches its next exit at Illinois Route 146 (IL 146) in eastern Vienna. I-24 heads southeast from Vienna into Massac County.{{cite map |author = Illinois Department of Transportation |title = Johnson County General Highway Map |url = http://www.dot.state.il.us/maps/county/johnson.pdf |year = 1994 |location = Springfield |publisher = Illinois Department of Transportation |access-date = January 9, 2011 |archive-date = March 6, 2012 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120306041908/http://www.dot.state.il.us/maps/county/johnson.pdf |url-status = live }} Its first exit in Massac County is at Big Bay Road, which serves the communities of Big Bay and New Columbia. I-24 continues southward, bypassing the community of Round Knob before entering Metropolis. The highway meets US 45 again in Metropolis and passes west of Fort Massac State Park. It leaves Metropolis and crosses the I-24 Bridge over the Ohio River. After that, it continues into Kentucky.{{cite map |author = Illinois Department of Transportation |title = Massac County General Highway Map |url = http://www.dot.state.il.us/maps/county/massac.pdf |year = 2001 |location = Springfield |publisher = Illinois Department of Transportation |access-date = January 9, 2011 |archive-date = March 6, 2012 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120306041938/http://www.dot.state.il.us/maps/county/massac.pdf |url-status = live }}

File:Whitehaven - Welcome to Kentucky.jpg, the only historic house used as a rest area in the US]]

I-24 enters the Jackson Purchase region of western Kentucky on a north–south alignment. Immediately within McCracken County, the route begins gradually veering southeast and enters the western fringes of Paducah a few miles later. The welcome center in Paducah utilizes Whitehaven, the only historic house in the United States used as a rest area.{{cite news|title=Whitehaven Welcome Center Celebrates 40th Anniversary|work=WPSD-TV|date=June 24, 2023|access-date=June 24, 2023|url=https://www.wpsdlocal6.com/news/whitehaven-welcome-center-celebrates-40th-anniversary/article_aee305d4-12fa-11ee-ba6b-fbe1077d0655.html}} In Paducah, the Interstate continues to shift southeast and has interchanges with US 60, US 62, and US 45. Passing through the Hendron and Farley communities adjacent to Paducah, the highway shifts into a direct east–west alignment several miles later and has an interchange with US 68 in Reidland. The route then enters Marshall County and, about {{convert|7|mi|km|spell=in}} later, reaches an interchange with I-69 and a connector road to US 62 and Calvert City to the north. Here, it begins a concurrency with the former. The two Interstates then shift northeast and have an interchange with US 62 about {{convert|1|mi|km|spell=in}} later. A short distance later, the Interstates cross the Tennessee River onto the Pennyroyal Plateau and Livingston County just north of Kentucky Dam and its Kentucky Lake impoundment. The highways then have an interchange with Kentucky Route 453 (KY 453) north of Lake City and Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area. They then cross the Cumberland River about {{convert|3|mi|km|spell=in}} later into Lyon County a few miles north of Barkley Dam and Lake Barkley.{{cite KYTC map |year = 2020 |access-date = June 23, 2022 }}

Gradually veering eastward, the two Interstates reach US 62 again near Kuttawa and Eddyville. Less than {{convert|2|mi|km|spell=in}} later, I-69 splits off to the northeast at a trumpet interchange, and I-24 passes through Mineral Mound State Park, veering southeast a few miles later. Passing through a mostly wooded area, the Interstate crosses KY 93 without an interchange, and then has an interchange with KY 293 near the Kentucky State Penitentiary. It then crosses an inlet of Lake Barkley a few miles later. Some distance later, the freeway enters a landscape consisting mostly of farmland and dips briefly into the southern tip of Caldwell County, where it has an interchange with KY 139. The Interstate then enters Trigg County and crosses the Muddy Fork Little River a short distance later. About {{convert|5|mi|km|spell=in}} later, the Interstate has an interchange with US 68 and KY 80 between Cadiz and Hopkinsville. The highway then crosses into Christian County a few miles later. Passing over the next several miles through additional farmland and bypassing Hopkinsville to the southwest, the Interstate reaches the southern terminus of I-169 at a trumpet interchange. About {{convert|4|mi|km|spell=in}} later, the Interstate has a partial cloverleaf interchange with US 41 Alternate, which provides access to Hopkinsville to the north and Fort Campbell and Clarksville, Tennessee, to the south. I-24 then crosses into Tennessee about {{convert|5|mi|km|spell=in}} later.

{{About|the current Interstate Highway|the current state highway|Tennessee State Route 24|section=yes}}

I-24 crosses into Tennessee from Kentucky traveling in a southeasterly-to-northwesterly direction into Montgomery County and serving as a major means of access to St. Louis and Chicago to the northwest. Immediately within the eastern outskirts of Clarksville, the fifth-largest city in Tennessee, the Interstate reaches an interchange with State Route 48 (SR 48), less than {{convert|1|mi|km|spell=in}} later, which provides access to Trenton in Kentucky to the north. About {{convert|3|mi|km|spell=in}} later the Interstate reaches US 79, which also provides access to Guthrie and Russellville in Kentucky to the northeast. Bypassing Clarksville to the east, the Interstate next reaches SR 237. The highway then begins a steep descent, with the westbound lanes utilizing a truck climbing lane to ascend the grade from the east. It then crosses the Red River before reaching SR 76.

Leaving Clarksville, the highway enters a long straight section with several steep grades and crosses into Robertson County a short distance later. Several miles later, the Interstate reaches an interchange with SR 49 near Pleasant View and Coopertown, which provides access to Springfield to the northeast and Ashland City to the southwest. The route then descends, utilizing another westbound truck lane, before briefly entering Cheatham County. The Interstate then crosses another steep hill over the next several miles, utilizing an eastbound truck lane before crossing into Davidson County. It then has an interchange with US 431 near the Joelton community and begins a gradual descent into the Nashville Basin, containing a westbound truck lane. Passing over the next few miles through dense woodlands, the highway reaches SR 45 (Old Hickory Boulevard) about {{convert|5|mi|km|spell=in}} later. Over the next {{convert|3|mi|km|spell=in}} beyond this point, the Interstate crosses over another steep hill, utilizing truck lanes on both the eastbound and westbound ascent before reaching Nashville at SR 155 (Briley Parkway).

File:I-65 Southbound in Nashville.JPG

Entering Nashville, I-24 has a cloverleaf interchange with SR 155 (Briley Parkway), a northern controlled-access beltway around Nashville. Less than {{convert|1|mi|km|spell=in}} later, the Interstate joins a concurrency with I-65, where the combined routes carry eight throughlanes and travel due south. About {{convert|1|mi|km|spell=in}} later is an interchange with US 41A/US 431 (Trinity Lane). About {{convert|1|mi|km|spell=in}} beyond this point, I-65 splits off and I-24 passes along the east side of downtown Nashville, where it reduces to six lanes and has interchanges with US 41, US 431, and US 31E, and passes near Nissan Stadium. The interstate then crosses the Cumberland River on the Silliman Evans Bridge and joins in a concurrency with I-40, traveling southeast-to-northwest with eight throughlanes. {{convert|2|mi|km|spell=In}} later, I-40 splits off eastwardly, heading toward Knoxville. Located at this interchange is also a partial interchange with US 41/US 70S (Murfreesboro Road).{{cite map |author = Long Range Planning Division Office of Data Visualization |title = Davidson County |year = 2018 |url = https://www.tn.gov/content/dam/tn/tdot/maps/county-maps-(us-shields)/a-g/Davidson%20County.pdf |publisher = Tennessee Department of Transportation }}

Less than {{Convert|1|mi|km|spell=in}} later is an interchange with the eastern terminus of I-440, which is also accessible from I-40 nearby. Between I-40 and I-440, I-24's eastbound lanes are split into two barrier-separated carriageways to prevent weaving of traffic destined from I-40 to I-440. A short distance later is once again an interchange with SR 155 (Briley Parkway/Thompson Lane) near Nashville International Airport. Beginning at the next exit, SR 255 (Harding Place), the left lanes operate as high-occupancy vehicle (HOV) lanes during rush hour. Over the next few miles, I-24 passes through the Antioch neighborhood, where it has interchanges with Haywood Lane and SR 254 (Bell Road), and crosses Mill Creek. I-24 then continues through southeast Nashville, reaching interchanges with Hickory Hollow Parkway and SR 171 (Old Hickory Boulevard).

File:I-24 West Exit 66 - TN266 (32888023233).jpg

Continuing through the southeastern suburbs of Nashville, I-24 crosses into Rutherford County about {{convert|2|mi|km|spell=in}} beyond. Immediately within the city of La Vergne, the Interstate has an exit with a connector road to that city. It then enters Smyrna where it first has an interchange with SR 266 (Sam Ridley Pkwy.). The Interstate then enters a long straightaway and reaches an interchange with SR 102 (Almaville Road), which also serves Smyrna and the Nissan Smyrna Assembly Plant. Leaving Smyrna, the route enters an unincorporated urban area, before reaching a three-level interchange with I-840, the outer southern beltway around Nashville. I-24 then enters Murfreesboro, the largest suburb of Nashville and sixth-largest city in Tennessee. The Interstate first has an interchange with a local thoroughfare (Medical Center Parkway/Fortress Blvd), before reaching SR 96, which also connects to Franklin. A short distance later, the Interstate crosses the west fork of the Stones River and reaches SR 99 (New Salem Highway). A short distance later, the highway reaches US 231, which also connects to Lebanon and Shelbyville. Here, the HOV lane restriction terminates, and the Interstate reduces from eight to four lanes. Leaving Murfreesboro, the Interstate {{convert|3|mi|km|spell=in}} later has an interchange with the Joe B. Jackson Parkway, which serves as an outer beltway around southeast Murfreesboro.

File:I-24 West - Exit 110 - TN53 (46295736504).jpg

Upon leaving Murfreesboro, I-24 enters a rural area, passing through a mix of farmland and woodlands and maintaining a straight alignment. Several miles later, the Interstate begins a gradual, largely unnoticeable, ascent out of the Nashville Basin onto the eastern Highland Rim. A few miles later, the Interstate briefly enters Bedford County and then has an interchange with SR 64, which connects to Shelbyville, near the Bedford–Coffee county line. I-24 then briefly descends, curves to the south, then the east, before once again resuming its gradual ascent, where it surpasses an elevation of {{convert|1000|ft|m}} for the first time in Tennessee.{{cite map |map-url = https://en-gb.topographic-map.com/maps/lsuz/Tennessee/ |map = Tennessee |author = Topographic-Map.com |date = January 22, 2022 |title = Topographic-Map.com |publisher = |access-date = January 22, 2022 }} Upon reaching the top of the rim several miles later, the interstate has an interchange with US 41. {{convert|5|mi|km|spell=In}} later, the highway enters Manchester, where it crosses the Little Duck River and then has interchanges with SR 53 and SR 55 in short proximity. A short distance later, the highway reaches an interchange with US 41 once again. Leaving Manchester, the Interstate maintains its relatively straight trajectory and passes through the northeastern corner of Arnold Air Force Base over a distance of about {{convert|3|mi|km|spell=in}}. The Interstate then travels over the next {{convert|10|mi|km}} through a wide swath of mostly farmland, before entering Grundy County and reaching an interchange with US 64 and SR 50 near the town of Pelham, where it begins a concurrency with the former route that is largely unsigned. A short distance later, I-24 crosses the Elk River, before reaching the base of the Cumberland Plateau.

{{see also|Monteagle Mountain}}

One of the most hazardous stretches of Interstate Highway in the US is located where I-24 crosses the Cumberland Plateau on steep grades in Grundy and Marion County near the town of Monteagle and is commonly known as "Monteagle Mountain" or "Monteagle". While all motorists are advised to exercise caution along this stretch, truckers are particularly vexed by Monteagle, and many have died in accidents along this stretch. The eastbound grade is particularly hazardous, with a protracted four-to-six-percent grade over several miles. On this stretch, I-24 is three lanes in each direction and contains two runaway truck ramps. Owing to geography, these two ramps are on the left side of the grade. The westbound downgrade of the plateau is also extremely hazardous and contains several sharp curves. Portions of this downgrade also feature offramp approach style lane dividers in order to slow motorists. Throughout the entire stretch across the Cumberland Plateau, the speed limit reduces to a maximum of {{convert|55|mph|km/h|abbr=on}} and {{convert|45|mph|km/h|abbr=on}} for trucks on both downgrades. At top of the Plateau, the Interstate surpasses {{convert|2000|ft|m}} in elevation, has interchanges with US 41A and US 41, respectively, and crosses into East Tennessee at the Grundy–Marion county line.

The eastern Monteagle grade also has one of the three widest medians of any Interstate Highway; the others are I-8 through the In-Ko-Pah grade in California and I-84 through the Cabbage Hill grade east of Pendleton, Oregon. There is more than {{convert|1|mi|km|spell=in}} between the eastbound and westbound lanes at one point. The eastbound lanes descend the hill on one side of Monteagle Mountain as part of the original three-lane (two ascending and one descending) US 64 alignment, while the westbound lanes ascend the other side of the hill on new roadbed built for that purpose.

File:I-24 West - Exit 152AB - US72 US64 To US41 (32818385041).jpg

After descending Monteagle, I-24 travels for several miles through a vast flat gorge within the plateau characterized by long straightaways and few curves before reaching an interchange with US 72 near Kimball and South Pittsburg, where US 64 splits off. This exit is the primary means of access to Huntsville, Alabama, for motorists in East Tennessee. About {{convert|3|mi|km|spell=in}} later, the Interstate has an interchange with SR 28 in Jasper and crosses the Sequatchie River. Beyond this point, the east and westbound lanes split more than {{convert|1/2|mi|m|spell=in}} apart over a few miles, encompassing farms, homes, and a few businesses in between. The route then crosses a large mountain ridge, has an interchange with SR 27, and, about {{convert|1|mi|km|spell=in}} later, crosses the Nickajack Lake impoundment of the Tennessee River. Beyond this point, the highway travels through a narrow gorge over several miles, crossing the Running Water Creek and traveling under its namesake trestle. This stretch is extremely crooked and can experience potentially strong crosswind. The Interstate then enters Hamilton County and the Eastern Time Zone and then crosses into Georgia less than {{convert|1/4|mi|m|spell=in}} later.

File:Int24wRoad-Exit167-Int59sBHM (32788861302).jpg

In the state of Georgia, I-24 travels for {{convert|4|mi|km|spell=in}} in Dade County along the southern flank of Raccoon Mountain. Along this stretch, exits remain numbered according to Tennessee's mileage; however, the roadway mileposts are numbered according to Georgia's mileage.{{cite news |url = http://onlineathens.com/stories/011600/new_0116000005.shtml |title = DOT to Change Interstate Exit Numbers |first = Ben |last = Deck |work = Athens Banner-Herald |date = January 16, 2000 |access-date = April 6, 2017 |archive-date = October 29, 2017 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20171029121132/http://onlineathens.com/stories/011600/new_0116000005.shtml |url-status = live }} This segment also carries the unsigned SR 409 designation for internal GDOT purposes. About {{convert|1.5|mi|km}} after entering the state, the Interstate has an interchange with the northern terminus of I-59, which provides access to Birmingham, Alabama, to the southwest. The route then shifts north and has an interchange with SR 299 in Wildwood about {{convert|1|mi|km|spell=in}} later before turning back north and reentering Tennessee about {{convert|0.75|mi|km}} later.

File:Int24wRoad-Exit180A-TN8n (32818374841).jpg

Upon reentering Tennessee and Hamilton County, I-24 travels through Tiftonia for several miles and has an interchange with US 11/US 41/US 72 (Lee Highway) about {{convert|3|mi|km|spell=in}} later near the Tiftonia neighborhood. About {{convert|2|mi|km|spell=in}} later, the Interstate curves sharply to the east, traveling on a narrow artificial causeway between the Tennessee River to the north and the northern tip of Lookout Mountain to the south. A short distance later, the Interstate gradually curves 90 degrees to the north, entering Chattanooga. Less than {{convert|1|mi|km|spell=in}} later is a three-way interchange with US 27 (unsigned I-124 northbound) northbound, which provides access to downtown Chattanooga directly to the north. Forming an unsigned concurrency with US 27, the highways sharply curve 90 degrees to the east, before widening to eight lanes. I-24 then briefly dips to the south, where it has a trumpet interchange with a connector to SR 8. A short distance later, US 27 splits off to the south at a near-cloverleaf interchange as Rossville Boulevard, where the Interstate reduces to six lanes. It then travels through the south side of Chattanooga before reaching a partial interchange with US 41/US 76. Here, I-24 reaches the "Ridge Cut", a {{convert|1/4|mi|m|adj=on|spell=in}}{{clarify|date=May 2022}} stretch where the Interstate ascends Missionary Ridge on a steep grade, first curving sharply to the north at the bottom of the ascent and then to the east again at the top. This stretch is notorious for severe congestion and is especially hazardous to truckers. At the top of the Ridge Cut, the Interstate enters a straight section and begins a gradual descent over a short distance. Traveling roughly along the boundary between Chattanooga and East Ridge, the Interstate has interchanges with multiple local thoroughfares over the next several miles. It then reaches its eastern terminus with I-75 at a semi-directional T interchange, known locally as the "75/24 Split" or simply "The Split".

A controlled-access highway between Nashville and Chattanooga was first included in the National Interregional Highway Committee's 1944 report, titled Interregional Highways, and a subsequent 1947 plan produced by the Public Roads Administration of the now-defunct Federal Works Agency.{{cite web |last=Weingroff |first=Richard F. |title=Designating the Urban Interstates |url=https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/infrastructure/fairbank.cfm |publisher=Federal Highway Administration |access-date=August 5, 2018}}{{cite map |url = http://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Interstate_Highway_plan_August_2,_1947_big_text.jpg |title = National System of Interstate Highways |author = Public Roads Administration |scale = Scale not given |location = Washington, DC |publisher = Public Roads Administration |date = August 2, 1947 |access-date = September 4, 2010 |via = Wikimedia Commons }}

The route was subsequently part of the original {{convert|1,047.6|mi|km}} of Interstate Highways authorized for Tennessee by the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956, commonly known as the Interstate Highway Act.{{cite book |type = Report |author1 = Tennessee State Highway Department Highway Planning Survey Division |author1-link = Tennessee Department of Transportation |author2 = Bureau of Public Roads |author2-link = Federal Highway Administration |year = 1959 |title = History of the Tennessee Highway Department |url = https://www.tn.gov/content/dam/tn/tdot/documents/100years/History_of_the_TN_Highway_Department.pdf |location = Nashville |publisher = Tennessee State Highway Department |access-date = April 26, 2020 |pages = 51–52 |archive-date = January 23, 2020 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200123205613/https://www.tn.gov/content/dam/tn/tdot/documents/100years/History_of_the_TN_Highway_Department.pdf |url-status = live }} The numbering was approved by the American Association of State Highway and Transportation Officials (AASHTO) on August 14, 1957.{{cite map |author = Public Roads Administration |author-link = Public Roads Administration |date = August 14, 1957 |title = Official Route Numbering for the National System of Interstate and Defense Highways as Adopted by the American Association of State Highway Officials |url = https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Interstate_Highway_plan_August_14,_1957.jpg |location = Washington, DC |publisher = Public Roads Administration |access-date = June 14, 2018 |via = Wikimedia Commons }} While most of the routing of I-24 proved was chosen without difficulty, the mountainous topography of the Chattanooga area posed a challenged to planners. The route was initially slated to pass near 38th Street through the Alton Park and East Lake neighborhoods, but was moved approximately {{convert|1.5|mi|km}} north in August 1955. The route was also planned to pass through a tunnel under Missionary Ridge until October 1960, when planners announced that a {{convert|120|ft|m|adj=on}} deep and {{convert|850|ft|m|adj=on}} wide cut would be made through the ridge. Engineers also initially recommended that the Interstate cross the Tennessee River onto Moccasin Bend south of downtown, and then again cross the river into Lookout Valley a short distance beyond, but this was rejected by the Bureau of Public Roads in April 1958 as too expensive.{{cite news |title=Bend Road Is Out In View Of Leech |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/chattanooga-daily-times-bend-road-is-out/136189325/ |access-date=December 3, 2023 |work=Chattanooga Daily Times |date=April 15, 1958 |page=1}}

File:Nashville, Tennessee 1955 Yellow Book.jpg

In 1957, officials in Tennessee, Kentucky, Illinois, and Missouri began an effort to extend I-24 west of its allocated western terminus in Nashville to St. Louis; however, each of the states had difficulty reaching an agreement on the proposed routing. Eventually, the debate evolved into two proposed alignments for the extension in Tennessee. The first alignment extended I-24 west of Nashville into Kentucky near Clarksville, and the second would have had I-24 run concurrent with I-40 west of Nashville for about {{Convert|40|mi|km}} to near Dickson, before splitting off to the northwest and crossing the Kentucky Lake impoundment of the Tennessee River a few miles before entering Kentucky.{{cite news |last1 = Kovach |first1 = Bill |title = State Fighting Blocks I-24 |url = https://tennessean.newspapers.com/clip/97304204/state-fighting-blocks-i-24/ |access-date = March 10, 2022 |work = The Nashville Tennessean |date = August 11, 1963 |page = 2B |via = Newspapers.com }} This latter alignment was favored by many officials in Tennessee and Western Kentucky, but the federal government preferred the former, due to its proximity to Fort Campbell.

On September 17, 1963, the governors of the four states in a meeting with President John F. Kennedy reached an agreement on the alignment, which included the Nashville-to-Clarksville alignment in Tennessee and extended the route's western terminus to Pulleys Mill, Illinois.{{cite news |last1 = Laycook |first1 = Lois |title = 4 Governors Agree on I-24; Campbell, Paducah on Route |url = https://tennessean.newspapers.com/clip/97304699/4-governors-agree-on-i-24-campbell/ |access-date = March 10, 2022 |work = The Nashville Tennessean |date = September 18, 1963 |pages = 1, [https://tennessean.newspapers.com/clip/97304735/compromise-i-24-route/ 4] |via = Newspapers.com }} The four governors also urged the approval of a new east–west Interstate Highway to run between Hayti, Missouri, and Jackson, Tennessee, incorporating a then-unbuilt bridge across the Mississippi River that had been proposed since the early 1940s.{{cite news |title = U.S. Offered I-24 Routing |url = https://tennessean.newspapers.com/clip/97304380/us-offered-i-24-routing/ |access-date = March 10, 2022 |work = The Nashville Tennessean |agency = Associated Press |date = September 29, 1963 |page = 6A |via = Newspapers.com }} On August 18, 1964, the Bureau of Public Roads, the predecessor agency to the Federal Highway Administration, approved the I-24 extension; however, they only authorized the westernmost {{Convert|27|mi|km}} of the route between Missouri and Tennessee, which was designated as I-155 and terminates in Dyersburg, Tennessee.{{cite news |last1 = Laycook |first1 = Lois |title = U.S. Approves I-24 to Illinois, Bridge in Dyer |url = https://tennessean.newspapers.com/clip/97305134/us-approves-i-24-to-illinois-bridge/ |access-date = March 10, 2022 |work = The Nashville Tennessean |date = August 19, 1964 |pages = 1, [https://tennessean.newspapers.com/clip/97305344/us-approves-i-24-to-illinois/ 2] |via = Newspapers.com }}{{cite web |url = https://highways.dot.gov/highway-history/interstate-system/50th-anniversary |title = Eisenhower Interstate Highway System, Previous Facts of the Day |author = |date = 2010 |publisher = Federal Highway Administration |access-date = July 5, 2020 |archive-date = August 8, 2020 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200808130349/https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/interstate/previousfacts.cfm |url-status = live }}

File:VISUAL POLLUTION ALONG INTERSTATE 24 - NARA - 543878.jpg, in September 1972]]

The first section of I-24 to be completed was the section in Chattanooga between SR 58 (Market Street) and east of the railyard overpass, which was let to contract on September 18, 1957, and dedicated and opened on December 23, 1958. This was the first section of freeway in Chattanooga and the first section of Interstate in East Tennessee constructed under the Interstate Highway System.{{cite news |title = New Road Links Pushed in State |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/97301884/new-road-links-pushed-in-state/ |access-date = March 10, 2022 |work = The Chattanooga Times |date = December 14, 1958 |page = 10 |via = Newspapers.com }}{{cite news |last1=Gibson |first1=Springer |title=23rd Street Freeway Work Ahead of Schedule |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/chattanooga-daily-times-23rd-street-free/136183360/ |access-date=December 3, 2023 |work=Chattanooga Daily Times |date=September 4, 1958 |page=3}}{{cite news |last1=Schneider |first1=Fred |title=Interstate Link On 23rd Opened |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/chattanooga-daily-times-interstate-link/136182913/ |access-date=December 3, 2023 |work=Chattanooga Daily Times |date=December 24, 1958 |page=3}} The interchange with I-75, along with the segment of I-75 extending to the Georgia state line, were let to contract on July 26, 1959, and dedicated on May 31, 1961.{{cite book |type = Report |author1 = |year = 1960 |title = Report of the State Highway Commissioner of Tennessee for the Biennium Ending June 30, 1960 |url = https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/pt?id=uc1.b3031573&seq=86 |location = Nashville |publisher = Tennessee Department of Highways |access-date = November 12, 2023 |page = 80 |oclc = |via=HathiTrust Digital Library }}{{cite news |author= |date=May 30, 1961 |title=Program Is Set At Spring Creek |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119732916/program-is-set-at-spring-creek/ |page=3 |work=The Chattanooga Times |access-date=February 26, 2023 |via=Newspapers.com}}{{cite news |last=Munck |first=Hal |date=June 1, 1961 |title=Spring Creek Interchange Dedicated by Road Chief |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119732814/spring-creek-interchange-dedicated-by/ |pages=3, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119732880/dedication-held-at-interchange/ 14] |work=The Chattanooga Times |access-date=February 26, 2023 |via=Newspapers.com}} The first major section to be completed was the western ascent of Monteagle Mountain, which stretched from US 64 near Pelham to US 41 in Monteagle and eliminated a stretch of US 41 with several hazardous hairpin curves.{{cite news |title = '$3 Million Horseshoe' Completed on U.S. Route 41 near Monteagle |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/97302813/3-million-horseshoe-completed-on/ |access-date = March 10, 2022 |work = The Chattanooga Times |date = February 25, 1962 |page = 11 |via = Newspapers.com }} Work began in September 1958,{{cite news |last1 = Peters |first1 = Mouzon |title = $1.5 Million Freeway Job to Take at Least Another Year to Complete |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/97302395/15-million-freeway-job-to-take-at/ |access-date = March 10, 2022 |work = The Chattanooga Times |date = August 19, 1959 |page = 14 |via = Newspapers.com }} and the stretch opened to traffic on February 6, 1962.{{cite news |last1 = Morrell |first1 = Ken |title = Monteagle Highway Opened |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/97303197/monteagle-highway-opened/ |access-date = March 10, 2022 |work = The Nashville Banner |date = February 6, 1962 |pages = 1, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/97303160/monteagle-highway-is-opened/ 8] |via = Newspapers.com }} The short segment in Chattanooga between Belvoir Avenue and I-75 opened in late October 1962.{{cite news |author= |date=October 27, 1962 |title=One Section of Freeway Opened, Another Soon to Be (photos) |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/119733571/one-section-of-freeway-opened-another/ |page=3 |work=Chattanooga Daily Times |access-date=February 26, 2023 |via=Newspapers.com}} This was followed by the short stretch between east of the railyard and Fourth Avenue on January 3, 1963.{{cite news |title=Freeway Section Is Opened (photo) |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/chattanooga-daily-times-freeway-section/136186240/ |access-date=December 3, 2023 |work=Chattanooga Daily Times |date=January 4, 1963 |page=1 |via=Newspapers.com}}{{cite news |title=Freeways Aiding City Motorists |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/chattanooga-daily-times-freeways-aiding/136186270/ |access-date=December 3, 2023 |work=Chattanooga Daily Times |date=January 16, 1963 |page=20 |via=Newspapers.com}}

In Nashville, a short segment of the concurrent segment with I-40, located between Fesslers Lane and the eastern interchange with that route, was declared complete on January 11, 1965.{{cite news |title = Second Access to I-40 Opens |url = https://tennessean.newspapers.com/clip/86540083/the-tennessean/ |access-date = February 20, 2022 |work = The Nashville Tennessean |date = January 12, 1965 |page = 13 |via = Newspapers.com }} The section between the western interchange with I-40 (then also I-65) and Fesslers Lane was partially opened in late December 1963{{cite news |last = Kovach |first = Bill |title = Evans Bridge Handling 10,000 Cars a Day |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/34066022/downtown-interstate-december-1963/ |page = 8A |work = The Nashville Tennessean |date = December 29, 1963 |access-date = July 15, 2020 |via = Newspapers.com }} and fully opened on April 19, 1965.{{cite news |author = |date = April 16, 1965 |title = Sections to Open on I-40, I-65 |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/88906739/sections-to-open-on-i-40-i-65/ |page = 19 |work = The Nashville Tennessean |access-date = November 15, 2021 |via = Newspapers.com }} The Silliman Evans Bridge, along with the stretch extending from US 41 (First Street) and I-40 was dedicated on January 14, 1964.{{cite news |last = Caldwell |first = Nat |title = Silliman Evans Bridge Dedicated |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/14626522/the-tennessean/ |page = 1 |work = The Nashville Tennessean |date = January 15, 1964 |access-date = March 15, 2020 |via = Newspapers.com }} On July 27, 1965, the short section between US 431 (Trinity Lane) and US 41 (First Street) was opened.{{cite news |author = |date = July 24, 1965 |title = Road to Open |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/98067136/road-to-open/ |work = The Nashville Tennessean |access-date = March 21, 2022 |via = Newspapers.com }} This section included provisions for the southern interchange with I-65 (then I-265), which had not been built yet. The Ridge Cut section in Chattanooga, which spanned between Fourth Avenue and Germantown Road, was dedicated on December 1, 1965.{{cite news |last = Jolley |first = Harmon |date = April 2, 2003 |title = Your Tax Dollars at Work: Ridge Cut |url = http://www.chattanoogan.com/2003/4/2/34671/Your-Tax-Dollars-At-Work---Ridge-Cut.aspx |work = The Chattanoogan |access-date = June 25, 2018 |archive-date = June 26, 2018 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180626054528/http://www.chattanoogan.com/2003/4/2/34671/Your-Tax-Dollars-At-Work---Ridge-Cut.aspx |url-status = live }}{{cite news |last1=Davis |first1=Michael |title=50 years later ...Interstate network transformed U.S. transportation system |url=https://digital.olivesoftware.com/olive/apa/timesfreepress/sharedview.article.aspx?href=CHATTFPRESS%2F2006%2F06%2F29&id=Ar00105&sk=3881BC07&viewMode=text |access-date=December 3, 2023 |work=Chattanooga Times Free Press |date=June 29, 2006}} To construct the segment at the foot of Lookout Mountain west of downtown Chattanooga, engineers shifted the river channel to the north in order to avoid impeding the flow. This was accomplished by dredging out the north bank and filling in along the south bank with approximately {{Convert|250000|ST|t LT}} of rock from a nearby quarry.{{cite news |last = Jolley |first = Harmon |date = April 6, 2003 |title = Your Tax Dollars at Work: I-24 Around Moccasin Bend |url = https://www.chattanoogan.com/2003/4/6/34843/Your-Tax-Dollars-At-Work---I-24-Around.aspx |work = The Chattanoogan |access-date = August 11, 2020 |archive-date = September 21, 2021 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210921233507/https://www.chattanoogan.com/2003/4/6/34843/Your-Tax-Dollars-At-Work---I-24-Around.aspx |url-status = live }} This stretch of I-24, which spanned from US 41 in Lookout Valley to 23rd Street near downtown Chattanooga, was completed on December 16, 1966, at a cost of approximately $15 million (equivalent to ${{formatprice|{{inflation|US-GDP|15000000|1966}}}} in {{inflation-year|US-GDP}}{{inflation-fn|index=US-GDP}}), making it one of the most expensive highway projects, per mile, at the time.{{cite news |title = Gov. Frank Clement Dedicates What Is Probably State's Costliest Road |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/97301200/gov-frank-clement-dedicates-what-is/ |access-date = March 10, 2022 |work = Johnson City Press-Chronicle |agency = United Press International |date = December 17, 1966 |page = 2 |via = Newspapers.com }}

I-24 was complete in Marion County to Monteagle Mountain in late 1966 and between US 41 in Manchester and US 64 near Pelham on July 27, 1967.{{cite news |author = |title = 12 Miles of I-24 to Open Today |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/56532644/12-miles-of-i-24-to-open-today/ |page = 46 |work = The Nashville Tennessean |date = July 27, 1967 |access-date = July 31, 2020 |via = Newspapers.com }} The short segment between SR 27 and SR 156 in Marion County, including the bridge over Nickajack Lake, opened on December 18, 1967.{{cite news |author = |title = I-24 Span Opened South of Jasper |url = https://tennessean.newspapers.com/clip/69451789/i-24-span-opened-south-of-jasper/ |page = 4 |work = The Tennessean |location = Nashville |date = December 19, 1967 |access-date = February 5, 2021 |via = Newspapers.com }} The stretch between US 41 in Lookout Valley and the interchange with I-59 in Dade County, Georgia, was jointly opened to traffic by both states on September 10, 1968, along with the {{convert|8|mi|km|adj=pre|-northernmost-|spell=in}} of I-59.{{cite news |author = |title = Federal Freeze to Delay Funds for Georgia Highways |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/69453595/federal-freeze-to-delay-funds-for/ |page = 18 |work = The Atlanta Constitution |agency = United Press International |date = September 12, 1968 |access-date = February 5, 2021 |via = Newspapers.com }} This was followed by the adjacent section extending west to SR 156 in early November 1968.{{cite news |title=New Interstate Links To Open |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-jackson-sun-new-interstate-links-to/136187590/ |access-date=December 3, 2023 |work=The Jackson Sun |date=October 20, 1968 |page=3}}{{cite news |title=Three Interstate Sections To Open In Next Few Weeks |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/elizabethton-star-three-interstate-secti/136187011/ |access-date=December 3, 2023 |work=Elizabethton Star |agency=United Press International |date=October 21, 1968 |pages=1, [https://www.newspapers.com/article/elizabethton-star-three-interstate/136187031/ 6]}} In Nashville, the short section between US 431 and the northern interchange with I-65, along with a short stretch of I-65 north of this section, opened to traffic on December 23, 1968.{{cite news |last = Fontenay |first = Charles |date = January 12, 1969 |title = Interstate Traffic Still Stalls in Metropolitan Nashville |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/6341112/christmas-68-enashville-portion-of/ |page = 86 |work = The Nashville Tennessean |access-date = March 26, 2020 |via = Newspapers.com }} The section between US 41 in northwestern Coffee County and US 41 in Manchester opened on December 3, 1969.{{cite news |author= |date=December 4, 1969 |title=I-24 Bypass Opened Around Manchester |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-tennessean-i-24-bypass-opened-around/131538176/ |page=66 |work=The Nashville Tennessean |access-date=September 10, 2023 |via=Newspapers.com}} On December 9, 1970, I-24 opened between US 231 in Murfreesboro and SR 64 near Beechgrove.{{cite news |author = |title = I-24 Section Opened Today |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/63071950/i-24-section-opened-today/ |page = 1 |work = The Daily News-Journal |location = Murfreesboro, Tennessee |date = December 9, 1970 |access-date = November 12, 2020 |via = Newspapers.com }} The route was opened between SR 171 in Nashville and US 231 in Murfreesboro on December 31, 1970.{{cite news |author = |title = New I-24 Section to Open |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/56532693/new-i-24-section-to-open/ |page = 14 |work = The Nashville Tennessean |date = December 31, 1970 |access-date = June 27, 2020 |via = Newspapers.com }} The last segment of I-24 between Nashville and Chattanooga, the segment located between SR 64 near Beechgrove and US 41 northwest of Manchester, was let to contract on January 31, 1969,{{cite news |title=I-24 Linkage Contracts Let |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-tennessean-i-24-linkage-contracts-le/136190116/ |access-date=December 3, 2023 |work=The Nashville Tennessean |date=February 1, 1969 |page=16}} and opened and dedicated on December 16, 1971.{{cite news |last = Kollar |first = Robert |date = December 17, 1971 |title = It'll Be Clear Sailing to Chattanooga Now |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/56532780/itll-be-clear-sailing-to-chattanooga/ |page = 21 |work = The Nashville Tennessean |access-date = July 31, 2020 |via = Newspapers.com }}

Construction began on I-24 between the Kentucky line and SR 48 in Clarksville on April 12, 1971.{{cite news |author= |date=April 18, 1971 |title=Work Rapid On 24 |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-leaf-chronicle-work-rapid-on-24/133804862/ |pages=1, [https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-leaf-chronicle-work-rapid/133804895/ 8] |work=Clarksville Leaf-Chronicle |access-date=November 28, 2023 |via=Newspapers.com}} In February 1972, the FHWA announced that it was redistributing funds that had been budgeted for Interstate construction in Tennessee to other states which were further behind on their Interstates. I-24 between Nashville and Kentucky was one of the sections affected by this cutback, which threatened to delay completion.{{cite news |last=Charlet |first=Jim |date=February 9, 1972 |title=Lid Clamped On I-24 Construction |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-leaf-chronicle-lid-clamped-on-i-24-c/135941631/ |pages=1, [https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-leaf-chronicle-lid-clamped-on-i-24/135942435/ 2] |work=Clarksville Leaf-Chronicle |access-date=November 28, 2023 |via=Newspapers.com}} In response, the state legislature authorized the issuance of $100 million (equivalent to ${{formatprice|{{inflation|US-GDP|100000000|1972}}}} in {{inflation-year|US-GDP}}{{inflation-fn|US-GDP}}) in bonds to finance the completion of I-24.{{cite news |author= |date=July 5, 1972 |title=State Will Have 828 Miles Of Interstate By Jan. 1 |url=https://theleafchronicle.newspapers.com/article/the-leaf-chronicle-state-will-have-828-m/135942938/ |page=2 |work=Clarksville Leaf-Chronicle |agency=Associated Press |access-date=November 28, 2023 |via=Newspapers.com}}{{cite news |last=Rawlins |first=Bill |date=July 6, 1972 |title=I-24 Bid Call Set This Fall |url=https://theleafchronicle.newspapers.com/article/the-leaf-chronicle-i-24-bid-call-set-thi/135943456/ |pages=1, [https://theleafchronicle.newspapers.com/article/the-leaf-chronicle-i-24-bid/135943478/ 2] |work=Clarksville Leaf-Chronicle |agency=Associated Press |access-date=November 28, 2023 |via=Newspapers.com}} This allowed for TDOT to let contracts for the remaining sections between Nashville and Clarksville from September to November 1972.{{cite news |author= |date=August 27, 1972 |title=Bidding Begins Next Month For Portions Of I-24 |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-leaf-chronicle-bidding-begins-next-m/135941777/ |page=5 |work=Clarksville Leaf-Chronicle |access-date=November 28, 2023 |via=Newspapers.com}}{{cite news |author= |date=September 27, 1972 |title=Bridge Bids Proposed |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-leaf-chronicle-bridge-bids-proposed/135944072/ |work=Clarksville Leaf-Chronicle |access-date=November 28, 2023 |via=Newspapers.com}}{{cite news |author= |date=October 20, 1972 |title=Bids Nov. 17 On I-24 Work |url=https://www.newspapers.com/article/the-memphis-press-scimitar-bids-nov-17/135944265/ |page=15 |work=Memphis Press-Scimitar |agency=United Press International |access-date=November 28, 2023 |via=Newspapers.com}} Once construction on the remainder of I-24 between Clarksville and Nashville was underway, the route was projected to be completed in late 1974 or early 1975, but would experience further delays as a result of geological problems. Construction on this approximately {{convert|44|mi|km|adj=on}} segment, the last segment of mainline Interstate Highway completed in Tennessee, proved to be difficult due to the rugged and hilly terrain.{{cite news |author = |title = Interstate Completion by New Year? Maybe |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/56532894/interstate-completion-by-new-year-maybe/ |work = Clarksville Leaf-Chronicle |date = December 28, 1977 |access-date = April 27, 2019 |via = Newspapers.com }} The approximately {{convert|32|mi|km|adj=on}} segment between US 68 in Hopkinsville, Kentucky, and US 79 in Clarksville, Tennessee, was jointly opened to traffic by both states on September 12, 1975.{{cite news |title = Carroll to Open Section of Interstate 24 Friday |work = Kentucky New Era |date = September 11, 1975 }}{{page needed|date=June 2022}}{{cite news |author = |title = First I-24 Section Opens |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/56532959/first-i-24-section-opens/ |work = Clarksville Leaf-Chronicle |date = September 14, 1975 |access-date = April 27, 2019 |via = Newspapers.com }} The {{convert|15|mi|km|adj=on}} section between US 79 and SR 49 in Robertson County was completed in September 1976.{{cite news |author = |title = Local News Notes |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/56533010/i-24-progress/ |work = Clarksville Leaf-Chronicle |date = December 8, 1976 |access-date = April 27, 2019 |via = Newspapers.com }} The last segment of I-24 in Tennessee, between SR 49 and I-65 in Nashville, was opened to traffic on January 5, 1978, more than two years behind schedule.{{cite news |author = |title = I-24 Opens |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/56532840/i-24-opens/ |work = Clarksville Leaf-Chronicle |date = January 6, 1978 |access-date = April 27, 2019 |via = Newspapers.com }}{{cite news |author = |title = Motorists Wait as Final Link of I-24 Opens |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/56533053/motorists-wait-as-final-link-of-i-24/ |work = The Tennessean |location = Nashville |date = January 8, 1978 |access-date = April 27, 2019 |via = Newspapers.com }}

The Silliman Evans Bridge was widened from six to eight lanes in a project that completely closed the northbound span between January 20, 1974, and April 6, 1975, and the southbound span from April 6, 1975, to November 16, 1975.{{cite news |last = Lewis |first = Dwight |date = January 18, 1974 |title = Northbound Evans Bridge to Close for Year Sunday |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/70378910/northbound-evans-bridge-to-close-for/ |page = 20 |work = The Tennessean |location = Nashville |access-date = February 13, 2021 |via = Newspapers.com }}{{cite news |date = April 9, 1975 |title = Silliman Evans Bridge Span Open |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/70384378/silliman-evans-bridge-span-open/ |page = 1 |work = The Tennessean |location = Nashville |access-date = February 13, 2021 |via = Newspapers.com }}{{cite news |date = November 14, 1975 |title = Lanes Open Sunday |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/70382759/lanes-open-sunday/ |page = 1 |work = The Tennessean |location = Nashville |access-date = February 13, 2021 |via = Newspapers.com }} This project also added shoulders to the bridge and removed railings that had been deemed unsafe and were believed to have played a role in multiple fatal accidents on the bridge.

File:I24 bridge.jpg connecting Illinois with Kentucky across the Ohio River]]

A groundbreaking ceremony for the first stretch of I-24 in Kentucky was held on December 6, 1967, in Lyon County.{{cite news |last1 = Powell |first1 = Bill |title = Breathitt to Break Ground for Well-Advanced Interstate 24 |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/102947130/breathitt-to-break-ground-for/ |access-date = June 1, 2022 |work = Sun-Democrat |date = December 4, 1967 |location = Paducah, Kentucky |pages = 1, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/102947224/breathitt/ 2] |via = Newspapers.com }}{{cite news |title = I-24 Work Is Started Without Gov. Breathitt |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/102946931/i-24-work-is-started-without-gov/ |access-date = June 1, 2022 |work = The Courier-Journal |agency = Associated Press |date = December 7, 1967 |location = Louisville, Kentucky |page = A29 |via = Newspapers.com }} The section of I-24 in Illinois was authorized for engineering by 1966 and authorized for construction by 1968.{{cite book |author = Office of Secretary of State |title = Illinois Blue Book, 1967–1968 |year = 1967 |publisher = State of Illinois |url = http://www.idaillinois.org/cdm/compoundobject/collection/bb/id/20934 |access-date = January 9, 2011 |page = 746 |via = Illinois Digital Archives |archive-date = February 1, 2014 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140201175330/http://www.idaillinois.org/cdm/compoundobject/collection/bb/id/20934 |url-status = live }}{{cite book |author = Office of Secretary of State |title = Illinois Blue Book, 1965–1966 |year = 1965 |publisher = State of Illinois |url = http://www.idaillinois.org/cdm/compoundobject/collection/bb/id/16489 |access-date = January 9, 2011 |page = 720 |via = Illinois Digital Archives |archive-date = February 1, 2014 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20140201182342/http://www.idaillinois.org/cdm/compoundobject/collection/bb/id/16489 |url-status = live }} The first section of I-24 in Illinois, located between US 45 in Vienna and US 45 in Metropolis, was dedicated and opened by Governor Dan Walker on January 15, 1974.{{cite news |title = 21-Mile Section of Interstate 24 Opened Tuesday by Gov. Walker |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/102947915/21-mile-section-of-interstate-24-opened/ |access-date = June 1, 2022 |work = Hardin County Independent |date = January 17, 1974 |location = Elizabethtown, Illinois |page = 1 |via = Newspapers.com }} On October 18, 1974, the stretch between US 45 in Metropolis and US 60 in Paducah, including the Ohio River bridge, opened to traffic.{{cite news |title = Traffic Flow Is Improved as I-24 Bridge in Operation |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/102948582/traffic-flow-is-improved-as-i-24-bridge/ |access-date = June 1, 2022 |work = Sun-Democrat |date = October 18, 1974 |location = Paducah, Kentucky |page = 1A |via = Newspapers.com }} This was also the first stretch of I-24 to open in Kentucky. The final segment of I-24 in Illinois, located between I-57 and US 45 in Vienna, was dedicated and opened to traffic by Governor Walker on January 24, 1976.{{cite news |title = Interstate 24 Opened at Pulleys Mill |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/102950596/interstate-24-opened-at-pulleys-mill/ |access-date = June 1, 2022 |work = Southern Illinoisan |date = January 25, 1976 |location = Carbondale, Illinois |page = 1 |via = Newspapers.com }} In October 1977, the stretch between US 68 in Reidland and US 62 east of Calvert City was completed.

The {{convert|2.5|mi|km|adj=on}} section between US 62 near Calvert City and KY 453, including the Tennessee River Bridge, which had been completed approximately five years prior, was opened to traffic on October 25, 1979.{{cite news |last1 = Powell |first1 = Bill |title = New Portion of I-24 Allows Use of Bridge over Tennessee River |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/102950315/new-portion-of-i-24-allows-use-of/ |access-date = June 1, 2022 |work = The Courier-Journal |date = June 27, 1979 |location = Louisville, Kentucky |page = B1 |via = Newspapers.com }} The section between US 60 in Paducah and US 68 in Reidland was opened and dedicated by Governor Julian Carroll on December 15, 1978.{{cite news |last1 = Matlock |first1 = Bill |title = Carroll Aiming for I-24 Wrap-Up Before He's Out |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/102949027/carroll-aiming-for-i-24-wrap-up-before/ |access-date = June 1, 2022 |work = The Paducah Sun |date = December 17, 1978 |page = 2A |via = Newspapers.com }} On December 10, 1979, the stretch between KY 453 and US 60/US 641 in Eddyville, including the Cumberland River Bridge, was opened.{{cite news |last1 = Powell |first1 = Bill |title = Carroll Spends Last Day Spreading Good News |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/102949568/carroll-spends-last-day-spreading-good/ |access-date = June 1, 2022 |work = The Courier-Journal |date = December 11, 1979 |location = Louisville, Kentucky |page = B5 |via = Newspapers.com }} Construction on the bridge began in 1972, but issues caused by unusual rock formations at the site, believed to have been formed by the 1811–1812 New Madrid earthquakes or earlier quakes, delayed completion and resulted in the cost nearly tripling.{{cite news |last1 = Powell |first1 = Bill |title = A Shock to the Budget: Unexplained Quake Damage Shot Bridge's Cost Sky-High |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/102949784/a-shock-to-the-budget/ |access-date = June 1, 2022 |work = The Courier-Journal |date = September 20, 1979 |location = Louisville, Kentucky |pages = A1, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/102949843/earthquake-shot-the-cost-of-bridge/ A12] |via = Newspapers.com }} On March 20, 1980, the {{convert|2.7|mi|km|adj=on}} stretch in Eddyville between US 62/US 641 and the Western Kentucky Parkway (now I-69), along with the westernmost {{convert|3.4|mi|km}} of the latter route, was opened.{{cite news |last1 = Powell |first1 = Bill |title = New Part of I-24 Finishes 4-Lane Route Across State |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/102950093/new-part-of-i-24-finishes-4-lane-route/ |access-date = June 1, 2022 |work = The Courier-Journal |date = March 21, 1980 |location = Louisville, Kentucky |page = B1 |via = Newspapers.com }} I-24 was completed when the {{convert|23|mi|km|adj=on}} section opened to traffic from what is now I-69 to US 68 east of Cadiz on May 23, 1980.{{cite news |last1 = Bartleman |first1 = Bill |title = At Last, an Unbroken I-24 from Here South |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/102946706/at-last-an-unbroken-i-24-from-here/ |access-date = June 1, 2022 |work = The Paducah Sun |date = May 22, 1980 |pages = 1A, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/102946664/i-24-final-segment-opening/ 12A] |via = Newspapers.com }}{{cite news |last1 = Powell |first1 = Bill |title = After 23 Years, Final Link of I-24 Will Open Without Fanfare |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/102946200/after-23-years-final-link-of-i-24-will/ |access-date = June 1, 2022 |work = The Courier-Journal |date = May 22, 1980 |location = Louisville, Kentucky |pages = B1, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/102946273/final-segment-of-interstate-24-to/ B2] |via = Newspapers.com }}

In November 1977, the Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) installed a system to detect tailgating vehicles in the westbound lanes of the concurrent segment with I-40, which consisted of sensors embedded in the roadway connected to overhead warning signs with flashing lights and horns.{{cite news |last = Gibson |first = Frank |date = November 26, 1977 |title = Sensors Lurk on Interstates for Tailgaters |url = https://tennessean.newspapers.com/clip/88272867/sensors-lurk-on-interstates-for/ |page = 1, [https://tennessean.newspapers.com/clip/88273191/tailgating-sensors-set-on-interstates/ 6] |work = The Tennessean |location = Nashville |access-date = November 3, 2021 |via = Newspapers.com }}{{cite news |date = December 1, 1977 |title = Checking on Tailgaters |url = https://tennessean.newspapers.com/clip/88272749/checking-on-tailgaters/ |page = 14 |work = The Tennessean |location = Nashville |access-date = November 3, 2021 |via = Newspapers.com }} The system was the first of its kind in the country but experienced technical problems and was criticized as ineffective, leading to its decommission in July 1980.{{cite news |last = Travis |first = Fred |date = October 14, 1980 |title = Another Expensive Boondoggle |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/88273757/another-expensive-boondoggle/ |page = 10A |work = The Leaf-Chronicle |location = Clarksville, Tennessee |access-date = November 3, 2021 |via = Newspapers.com }} This segment was widened from six to eight lanes between July 1979 and January 1980 by removing the right shoulders, narrowing the lanes by {{convert|1|ft|m|spell=in}}, and shifting traffic slightly to the left.{{cite news |date = May 28, 1979 |title = Motorists Face I-40 Disruption |url = https://tennessean.newspapers.com/clip/88276594/motorists-face-i-40-disruption/ |page = 16 |work = The Tennessean |location = Nashville |access-date = November 3, 2021 |via = Newspapers.com }}{{cite news |date = July 12, 1979 |title = Work to Widen I-24-40 Lanes Scheduled to Begin Today |url = https://tennessean.newspapers.com/clip/88275815/work-to-widen-i-24-40-lanes-scheduled/ |page = 15 |work = The Tennessean |location = Nashville |access-date = November 3, 2021 |via = Newspapers.com }}

A project began in April 1985 that extensively straightened and rebuilt the eastbound lanes of I-24 on the eastern downgrade of Monteagle Mountain and reduced the grade.{{cite news |author = |title = New I-24 Lanes Opened at Monteagle |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/50191131/new-i-24-lanes-opened-at-monteagle/ |work = The Tennessean |location = Nashville |agency = Associated Press |date = July 12, 1989 |page = 2B |issn = 1053-6590 |access-date = May 4, 2020 |via = Newspapers.com }} The project also added left shoulders and an additional runaway truck ramp, the latter of which was not originally planned.{{cite news |author = |title = New I-24 Stretch to Open July 11 |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/50191031/new-i-24-stretch-to-open-july-11/ |work = The Tennessean |location = Nashville |agency = Associated Press |date = July 6, 1989 |page = 3B |issn = 1053-6590 |access-date = May 4, 2020 |via = Newspapers.com }} This work was completed in 1989, and the lanes were reopened on July 11 of that year in a ceremony officiated by Governor Ned McWherter. The project experienced many setbacks including geological problems, which caused extensive delays. Originally targeted for completion in December 1987 at a cost of $17 million (equivalent to ${{formatprice|{{inflation|US-GDP|17000000|1987}}}} in {{inflation-year|US-GDP}}{{inflation-fn|index=US-GDP}}), the final cost was $29.5 million (equivalent to ${{formatprice|{{inflation|US-GDP|29500000|1989}}}} in {{inflation-year|US-GDP}}{{inflation-fn|index=US-GDP}}). During this project, both directions of traffic were routed to the westbound lanes of I-24, which were separated by a Jersey barrier, and a temporary runaway truck ramp for eastbound traffic was also provided along this alignment.{{cite news |last = George |first = Dan |title = I-24 East over Monteagle Likely Open Next Summer |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/50191231/i-24-east-over-monteagle-likely-open/ |work = The Tennessean |location = Nashville |agency = Associated Press |date = December 16, 1988 |page = 21A |issn = 1053-6590 |access-date = May 4, 2020 |via = Newspapers.com }} A truck station to allow for the adjustment of brakes opened in January 1992. After the safety improvements were completed, accidents in the eastbound lanes of this stretch dropped from 54 in 1983 to 3 in 1991.{{cite news |last = Salomon |first = Alan |date = March 17, 1992 |title = Once-Defenseless Truckers Grateful as Tennessee 'Tames' Killer Mountain |url = https://www.joc.com/once-defenseless-truckers-grateful-tennessee-tames-killer-mountain_19920317.html |work = Journal of Commerce |access-date = April 28, 2019 |archive-date = April 28, 2019 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20190428060226/https://www.joc.com/once-defenseless-truckers-grateful-tennessee-tames-killer-mountain_19920317.html |url-status = live }}

The {{convert|4.7|mi|km|adj=on}} stretch between near SR 255 (Harding Place) and near SR 254 (Bell Road) was widened to six lanes between April 1989 and November 1990.{{cite news |title = Nashville Road Work |url = https://tennessean.newspapers.com/clip/101768732/nashville-road-work/ |access-date = May 13, 2022 |work = The Tennessean |date = July 2, 1990 |location = Nashville |page = 4B |via = Newspapers.com }}{{cite web |url = https://www.tn.gov/content/dam/tn/tdot/documents/business-how-do-i-documents/Const_n87-91%20(1).pdf |title = 1987–1991 Contract Awards |author = Tennessee Department of Transportation |publisher = Tennessee Department of Transportation |access-date = July 7, 2020 |archive-date = January 24, 2020 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20200124101423/https://www.tn.gov/content/dam/tn/tdot/documents/business-how-do-i-documents/Const_n87-91%20(1).pdf |url-status = live }} Between November 1994 and November 1995, TDOT made safety modifications to I-24 through the eastern terminus with I-440 and the nearby split with I-40, which reconfigured the routes to provide direct access to I-440 westbound from I-40 westbound, splitting I-24's eastbound lanes into two barrier-separated carriageways.{{cite news |last = Ferguson |first = Carrie |date = October 28, 1994 |title = First Stage of Interstate Relief Expected Soon |url = https://tennessean.newspapers.com/clip/62839793/first-stage-of-interstate-relief/ |page = 1A |work = The Tennessean |location = Nashville |access-date = November 8, 2020 |via = Newspapers.com }}{{cite news |last = Kerr |first = Gail |date = September 23, 1995 |title = Old I-440 Dash Thing of the Past |url = https://tennessean.newspapers.com/clip/62837264/old-i-440-dash-thing-of-the-past/ |page = 1B |work = The Tennessean |location = Nashville |access-date = November 8, 2020 |via = Newspapers.com }}

The approximately {{convert|9.3|mi|km|adj=on}} segment between Haywood Lane in Nashville and SR 266 in Smyrna was widened from four to eight lanes between June 1997 and December 1998, installing the first HOV lanes on I-24.{{cite press release |author = |title = New Lanes to Open on I-24 |url = http://www.tdot.state.tn.us/information-office/press98.htm#014 |publisher = Tennessee Department of Transportation |date = November 30, 1998 |access-date = February 7, 2020 |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20000824052824/http://www.tdot.state.tn.us/information-office/press98.htm#014 |archive-date = August 24, 2000 }} The {{convert|8.2|mi|km|adj=on}} portion between SR 266 and I-840 was widened from four to eight lanes between August 1998 and November 2000. The {{convert|4|mi|km|spell=in|adj=on}} segment between I-440 and Haywood Lane was widened from three to four lanes in each direction between March 2000 and May 2002 in a project that also improved the interchanges on this segment.{{cite press release |author = |title = Final Paving Begins on I-24: Project Finishes Six Weeks Early |url = http://www.tdot.state.tn.us/information-office/2002pr/Apr2002.htm |publisher = Tennessee Department of Transportation |date = April 17, 2002 |access-date = February 7, 2020 |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20030625045107/http://www.tdot.state.tn.us/information-office/2002pr/Apr2002.htm |archive-date = June 25, 2003 }} Widening of the segment between I-840 and SR 96 began in early 2004 and was completed in the summer of 2005.{{cite news |last = Anderson |first = Matt |date = September 22, 2005 |title = Interstate 24 Is County's Transportation Lifeline |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/56537123/interstate-24-is-countys/ |work = The Tennessean |location = Nashville |access-date = June 18, 2018 |via = Newspapers.com }} This project added a new interchange at Medical Center Parkway. A project that widened I-24 from four to eight lanes between SR 96 and US 231, and also added a new interchange with SR 99, began in April 2006 and was completed on January 28, 2008.{{cite press release |author = |title = I-24 Widening Project in Murfreesboro Complete Five Months Early |url = http://www.tdot.state.tn.us/news/2008/012808.htm |publisher = Tennessee Department of Transportation |date = January 28, 2008 |access-date = February 7, 2020 |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20080811214702/http://www.tdot.state.tn.us/news/2008/012808.htm |archive-date = August 11, 2008 }}

In Chattanooga, the stretch between the bottom of the Ridge Cut and east of the Big Scramble was widened from four to six lanes in the mid- to latter 1980s. Between May 1989 and November 1991, the Big Scramble was modified in a project that eliminated left-hand entrance and exit ramps, widened parts of the main carriageway, and converted the westbound lanes of I-24 into the ramp carrying I-24 westbound traffic to US 27 northbound.

The original interchange with I-75, which was a simple directional T design, had repeatedly been ranked as one of the top 10 worst freight bottlenecks in the US by the American Transportation Research Institute and contained several sharp curves and other safety hazards. In December 2018, a contract was awarded to rebuild the interchange, with preliminary work beginning in May 2019.{{cite news |date = December 21, 2018 |title = TDOT: I-24/I-75 Interchange Project to Begin in 2019, Last Less than 3 Years |url = https://newschannel9.com/news/local/tdot-i-24i-75-interchange-project-to-begin-in-2019-last-less-than-3-years |publisher = WTVC-TV |location = Chattanooga, Tennessee |access-date = December 7, 2019 |archive-date = December 8, 2019 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20191208035422/https://newschannel9.com/news/local/tdot-i-24i-75-interchange-project-to-begin-in-2019-last-less-than-3-years |url-status = live }}{{cite news |last = Benton |first = Ben |date = May 6, 2019 |title = Contractor Starts Early Work, Materials DDeliveries at I-75/I-24 'Split' |url = https://www.timesfreepress.com/news/local/story/2019/may/06/contractor-starts-early-work-materials-delive/494054/ |work = Chattanooga Times Free Press |access-date = December 7, 2019 |archive-date = December 8, 2019 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20191208035422/https://www.timesfreepress.com/news/local/story/2019/may/06/contractor-starts-early-work-materials-delive/494054/ |url-status = live }} The project consisted of eliminating left-hand entrance and exit ramps from I-75 onto I-24, straightening curves, widening I-75 to six lanes through the interchange, widening two ramps from I-75 to I-24 to three lanes, replacing two overpass bridges, and construction of a collector–distributor facility that carries traffic directly from US 41 and the Tennessee Welcome Center along I-75 northbound, providing direct access to both I-75 northbound and I-24 westbound. Additional space was also provided to widen the remaining ramps between I-75 and I-24 to three lanes, which will be done in the second phase.{{cite web |title = Interstate 75 Interchange at Interstate 24 |url = https://www.tn.gov/tdot/projects/region-2/i-75-interchange-at-i-24.html |publisher = Tennessee Department of Transportation |access-date = August 23, 2021 |location = Nashville |date = 2018 |archive-date = August 23, 2021 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210823010537/https://www.tn.gov/tdot/projects/region-2/i-75-interchange-at-i-24.html |url-status = live }} The project was completed on August 19, 2021, at a cost of $133.5 million, making it the second-most expensive individual contract in state history at the time.{{cite news |last1 = Benton |first1 = Ben |title = Phase 1 of Split Project Crosses Finish Line, but Bottleneck from I-75 North to I-24 Will Linger |url = https://www.timesfreepress.com/news/local/story/2021/aug/22/phase-1-split-project-crosses-finish-line-bot/552728/ |access-date = August 23, 2021 |work = Chattanooga Times Free Press |date = August 22, 2021 |archive-date = August 23, 2021 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210823005734/https://www.timesfreepress.com/news/local/story/2021/aug/22/phase-1-split-project-crosses-finish-line-bot/552728/ |url-status = live }} The second phase will widen the adjacent segment of I-24 west of the interchange and lengthen auxiliary lanes on I-75 about {{convert|1.5|mi|km}} north of the interchange. In preparation for the second phase, the Belvoir Avenue overpass and Germantown Road underpass were replaced between May 2020 and August 2021; the latter replacement utilized accelerated bridge construction by shifting I-24 traffic onto the Germantown Road entrance and exit ramp and adjacent frontage roads.{{cite press release |date = April 15, 2020 |title = TDOT to Begin Bridge Replacement Project on Interstate 24 in Chattanooga |url = https://www.tn.gov/content/tn/tdot/news/2020/4/15/tdot-contractor-to-begin-bridge-replacement-project-on-interstate-24-in-chattanooga--hamilton-county.html |publisher = Tennessee Department of Transportation |access-date = May 13, 2022 |archive-date = May 13, 2022 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20220513062843/https://www.tn.gov/content/tn/tdot/news/2020/4/15/tdot-contractor-to-begin-bridge-replacement-project-on-interstate-24-in-chattanooga--hamilton-county.html |url-status = live }}

The {{convert|28|mi|km|adj=on}} stretch of I-24 between I-440 (exit 53) in Nashville and US 231 (exit 81) in Murfreesboro is currently in the process of being developed into the "I-24 SMART Corridor" in an effort to address congestion and mobility issues.{{cite web |title = I-24 SMART Corridor |url = https://www.tn.gov/tdot/projects/region-3/i-24-smart-corridor.html |publisher = Tennessee Department of Transportation |access-date = May 13, 2022 |archive-date = April 17, 2022 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20220417120338/https://www.tn.gov/tdot/projects/region-3/i-24-smart-corridor.html |url-status = live }} In recent years, this stretch of I-24 has become the most congested highway corridor in the state, due to the rapid growth of the region. The project pairs this stretch with the adjacent paralleling stretch of US 41/US 70S (Murfreesboro Road) and all connecting roads in between. The first phase, which ran from October 2018 to December 2021, included the construction of emergency pull-offs, improvements to multiple entrance and exit ramps, the erection of additional roadside dynamic-message signs (DMSs), and upgrades to traffic signals along the corridor.{{cite web |title = I-24 SMART Corridor Timeline |url = https://www.tn.gov/tdot/projects/region-3/i-24-smart-corridor/timeline.html |publisher = Tennessee Department of Transportation |access-date = May 13, 2022 |archive-date = May 13, 2022 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20220513053707/https://www.tn.gov/tdot/projects/region-3/i-24-smart-corridor/timeline.html |url-status = live }} The second phase, which began in March 2022, includes the erection of 67 overhead gantries with signs between mileposts 53 and 70 that will display recommended variable speed limits and variable lane control signs for each lane.{{cite news |last1 = Wenzel |first1 = Joe |last2 = Sulek |first2 = Marissa |title = TDOT: Construction to Start on Phase 2 of I-24 SMART Corridor Next Month |url = https://www.wsmv.com/2022/03/25/tdot-construction-start-phase-2-i-24-smart-corridor-next-month/ |access-date = May 13, 2022 |publisher = WSMV-TV |date = March 25, 2022 |location = Nashville, Tennessee |archive-date = March 25, 2022 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20220325165223/https://www.wsmv.com/2022/03/25/tdot-construction-start-phase-2-i-24-smart-corridor-next-month/ |url-status = live }}{{cite news |last1 = McCarthy |first1 = Darby |title = I-24 SMART Corridor Project Begins Phase 2, Lane Closures from Nashville to Murfreesboro Beginning in April |url = https://www.newschannel5.com/news/i-24-smart-corridor-project-begins-phase-2-lane-closures-from-nashville-to-murfreesboro-beginning-in-april |access-date = May 13, 2022 |publisher = WTVF-TV |date = March 27, 2022 |location = Nashville, Tennessee |archive-date = April 19, 2022 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20220419110113/https://www.newschannel5.com/news/i-24-smart-corridor-project-begins-phase-2-lane-closures-from-nashville-to-murfreesboro-beginning-in-april |url-status = live }} The final phase will include the installation of ramp meters on certain onramps and the installation of additional closed-circuit television (CCTV) cameras and DMS boards and Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) improvements along connecting arterials.

On July 27, 1973, a station wagon traveling on the northbound span of the Silliman Evans Bridge in Nashville crashed through the bridge's guardrails, exited the roadway, and landed on the ground about {{convert|100|ft|m}} below, killing eight of the nine occupants and injuring the other.{{cite news |last1 = Gibson |first1 = Frank |last2 = Lewis |first2 = Dwight |date = July 28, 1973 |title = Long Drive, Fogged Road Spell Tragedy |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/70370910/long-drive-fogged-road-spell-tragedy/ |pages = 1, [https://www.newspapers.com/clip/70371507/overnight-drive-fog-spell-tragedy/ 13] |work = The Tennessean |location = Nashville |access-date = February 13, 2021 |via = Newspapers.com }} The accident was investigated by the National Transportation Safety Board (NTSB), which named a number of unsafe design features of the bridge as contributors to the crash. The report also concluded that the state had been aware of the safety hazards of the bridge's rails prior to the accident, which had played a role in previous fatal accidents on the bridge.{{cite news |last = Gillem |first = Tom |date = August 12, 1974 |title = State Knew Barrier Unsafe, Report Says |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/70379563/state-knew-barrier-unsafe-report-says/ |page = 1 |work = The Tennessean |location = Nashville |access-date = February 13, 2021 |via = Newspapers.com }}{{cite news |date = August 14, 1974 |title = Bridge Information Needed |url = https://www.newspapers.com/clip/70380917/bridge-information-needed/ |page = 8 |work = The Tennessean |location = Nashville |access-date = February 13, 2021 |via = Newspapers.com }} This accident was cited as the primary event that led to the widening project on the bridge months later.

In 1979, structural problems were discovered on the Ohio River Bridge, including 119 cracks as a result of defective welding in the tie girders.{{cite news |title = Bridge Jam to Continue over a Year |work = Williamson Daily News |date = August 30, 1979 }}{{page needed|date=June 2022}} The bridge was closed on August 3, 1979, and remained closed to all traffic through October 1980 and all truck traffic until mid-1981.{{cite news |title = Light Traffic Scheduled for I-24 Bridge by Oct. 1 |work = The Southeast Missourian |date = August 8, 1980 }}{{page needed|date=June 2022}}

On May 18, 2010, it was announced that a sinkhole was found in the eastbound lanes of I-24 in Grundy County near the exit to US 64/SR 50 (exit 127). TDOT officials stated that the hole was growing and diverted traffic onto the westbound lanes.{{cite news |url = http://www.newschannel5.com/global/story.asp?s=12500016 |title = Sinkhole Forces I-24 Closure in Grundy County |location = Nashville, Tennessee |publisher = WTVF-TV |date = May 18, 2010 |access-date = May 18, 2010 |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20100522043722/https://www.newschannel5.com/global/story.asp?s=12500016 |archive-date = May 22, 2010 }} Following emergency repairs, the highway was reopened several days later.{{cite news |url = http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2010/may/22/sinkhole-repaired-i-24-reopens/?local |title = Sinkhole Repaired, I-24 Reopens |work = Chattanooga Times Free Press |date = May 22, 2010 |access-date = June 26, 2010 |archive-date = March 18, 2012 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120318055305/http://www.timesfreepress.com/news/2010/may/22/sinkhole-repaired-i-24-reopens/?local |url-status = live }}

TDOT and GDOT are jointly making preparations to widen the {{convert|10|mi|km|adj=on}} stretch of I-24 from I-59 to US 27 in Chattanooga to six lanes. This project is expected to be split into three phases, due to its location within two states and the difficulties of expanding the stretch which is located on a narrow artificial causeway between Lookout Mountain and the Tennessee River. This stretch has long experienced severe congestion issues and is considered a major bottleneck, particularly for trucks.{{cite news |author = |date = August 20, 2021 |title = Georgia/Tennessee Making Plans to Widen I-24 to 3 Lanes Between I-59 and US 27 in Chattanooga |url = https://www.chattanoogan.com/2021/8/20/433218/GeorgiaTennessee-Making-Plans-To-Widen.aspx |work = The Chattanoogan |access-date = May 28, 2022 |archive-date = August 20, 2021 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210820211131/https://www.chattanoogan.com/2021/8/20/433218/GeorgiaTennessee-Making-Plans-To-Widen.aspx |url-status = live }}

Other stretches of I-24 planned to be widened in the near future include the stretch through Clarksville, the stretch between SR 45 and I-65 northwest of Nashville, and the eastern leg of the downtown loop in Nashville between I-65 and I-40.{{cite news |last = Settle |first = Jimmy |date = January 31, 2018 |title = Widening of I-24 through Clarksville Moves Up on TDOT To-Do List |url = https://www.theleafchronicle.com/story/news/local/clarksville/2018/01/31/widening-24-through-clarksville-moves-up-tdot-do-list/1078995001/ |work = The Leaf-Chronicle |location = Clarksville, Tennessee |access-date = May 28, 2022 }}{{cite web |url = https://www.arcgis.com/apps/dashboards/e14888bce2954050a10df5e949a1bc1d |title = TDOT iTRIP Dashboard |author = |date = |publisher = Tennessee Department of Transportation |access-date = May 28, 2022 |archive-date = June 19, 2021 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20210619095740/https://www.arcgis.com/apps/dashboards/e14888bce2954050a10df5e949a1bc1d |url-status = live }}

{{Jcttop|exit|state_col=State|length_ref={{cite web |author = Illinois Technology Transfer Center |url = http://gis.dot.illinois.gov/gist2/ |title = T2 GIS Data |access-date = September 2, 2015 |date = 2013 |publisher = Illinois Department of Transportation |url-status = dead |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20130626110409/http://gis.dot.illinois.gov/gist2/ |archive-date = June 26, 2013 }}{{cite book |author = Kentucky Transportation Cabinet |url = http://apps.transportation.ky.gov/DMI_Reports/Official_MP_RL_params.aspx |title = Official DMI Route Log |publisher = Kentucky Transportation Cabinet |access-date = October 23, 2013 |author-link = Kentucky Transportation Cabinet |archive-date = January 7, 2012 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120107203622/http://apps.transportation.ky.gov/DMI_Reports/Official_MP_RL_params.aspx |url-status = live }}{{cite map |map=National Highway Planning Network |map-url=https://data-usdot.opendata.arcgis.com/datasets/usdot::national-highway-planning-network/explore?location=35.843003%2C-86.343051%2C7.30 |author=Bureau of Transportation Statistics |date = June 13, 2022 |title = National Transportation Atlas Database |publisher=United States Department of Transportation |access-date=April 29, 2023 |location=Washington, D.C.}}|exit_ref={{cite map |url = http://www.tdot.state.tn.us/maps.htm |title = Official Transportation Map |year = 2013 |publisher = Tennessee Department of Transportation |author = Long Range Planning Division-Mapping Section |scale = c. 1:633,600 |access-date = December 21, 2013 |archive-date = December 9, 2013 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20131209195555/http://www.tdot.state.tn.us/maps.htm |url-status = dead }}}}

{{ILint|exit

|sspan=6

|county=Williamson

|location=Southern Precinct

|ctdab=Williamson

|mile=0.00

|exit=—

|road={{Jct|state=IL|I|57|location1=Chicago|location2=Memphis}}

|notes=Western terminus; exit 44 on I-57

}}

{{ILint|exit

|county=Johnson

|cspan=3

|location=Tunnel Hill

|mile=7.22

|exit=7

|road={{Jct|state=IL|CR|county1=Johnson|12|name1=Tunnel Hill Road|city1=Tunnel Hill|city2=Goreville}}

}}

{{ILint|exit

|location=Bloomfield

|ctdab=Johnson

|mile=13.64

|exit=14

|road={{Jct|state=IL|US|45|city1=Vienna|city2=Harrisburg}}

}}

{{ILint|exit

|location=Vienna

|mile=16.00

|exit=16

|road={{Jct|state=IL|IL|146|city1=Vienna|city2=Golconda}}

}}

{{ILint|exit

|county=Massac

|cspan=2

|location=Georges Creek Precinct

|ctdab=Massac

|mile=26.55

|exit=27

|road={{jct|state=IL|CR|county1=Massac|10|name1=Big Bay Road|city1=New Columbia|city2=Big Bay}}

|notes=No services

}}

{{ILint|exit

|location=Metropolis

|mile=37.16

|exit=37

|road={{Jct|state=IL|US|45|city1=Metropolis|city2=Brookport}}

|notes=Access to Fort Massac State Park; rest area

}}

{{Jctbridge|exit

|river=Ohio River

|river_wide=yes

|mile=38.73

|mile2=0.000

|line=yes

|bridge=Interstate 24 Bridge
Illinois–Kentucky state line

}}

{{KYint|exit

|sspan=17

|county=McCracken

|cspan=5

|location=Paducah

|lspan=3

|mile=2.958

|exit=3

|road={{Jct|state=KY|KY|305|city1=Paducah}}

}}

{{KYint|exit

|mile=4.328

|exit=4

|road={{Jct|state=KY|BL|24|dab1=Paducah|dir1=east|US|60|city1=Paducah|city2=Wickliffe}}

|notes=Western terminus of I-24 Bus.; access to Kentucky Oaks Mall

}}

{{KYint|exit

|mile=6.387

|mile2=6.865

|exit=7

|road={{Jct|state=KY|US|45|US|62|city1=Bardwell|city2=Mayfield}}

}}

{{KYint|exit

|location=none

|mile=11.035

|exit=11

|road={{Jct|state=KY|BL|24|dab1=Paducah|dir1=west|KY|1954|name2=Husband Road|city1=Paducah}}

|notes=Eastern terminus of I-24 Bus.

}}

{{KYint|exit

|location=none

|mile=16.153

|exit=16

|road={{Jct|state=KY|US|68|city1=Paducah}}

}}

{{KYint|exit

|county=Marshall

|cspan=2

|location=none

|mile=24.961

|exit=25

|type=concur

|road={{Jct|state=KY|I|69|dir1=south|city1=Fulton|city2=Calvert City}}

|notes=Western end of I-69 concurrency; signed as exits 25A (south) and 25B (north)

}}

{{KYint|exit

|location=Calvert City

|mile=26.565

|exit=27

|road={{Jct|state=KY|US|62|location1=Kentucky Dam|city2=Calvert City}}

}}

{{KYint|exit

|county=Livingston

|location=none

|mile=30.729

|exit=31

|road={{Jct|state=KY|KY|453|city1=Grand Rivers|city2=Smithland}}

|notes=Serves Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area

}}

{{KYint|exit

|county=Lyon

|cspan=3

|location=Kuttawa

|mile=39.553

|exit=40

|road={{Jct|state=KY|KY|93|US|62|US|641|city1=Eddyville|city2=Kuttawa}}

}}

{{KYint|exit

|location=Eddyville

|mile=41.647

|exit=42

|type=concur

|road={{Jct|state=KY|I|69|Parkway|Western Kentucky|name2=to KY 9001|dir1=north|city1=Henderson|city2=Elizabethtown}}

|notes=Eastern end of I-69 concurrency; I-69 exit 68

}}

{{KYint|exit

|location=none

|mile=44.732

|exit=45

|road={{Jct|state=KY|KY|293|city1=Princeton}}

}}

{{KYint|exit

|county=Caldwell

|location=none

|mile=55.632

|exit=56

|road={{Jct|state=KY|KY|139|city1=Princeton|city2=Cadiz}}

}}

{{KYint|exit

|county=Trigg

|location=Cadiz

|mile=65.313

|exit=65

|road={{Jct|state=KY|US|68|KY|80|city1=Cadiz|city2=Hopkinsville}}

|notes=Serves Land Between the Lakes National Recreation Area

}}

{{KYint|exit

|county=Christian

|cspan=4

|location=none

|mile=72.692

|exit=73

|road={{Jct|state=KY|KY|117|city1=Newstead|city2=Gracey}}

}}

{{KYint|exit

|location=none

|mile=81.243

|exit=81

|road={{Jct|state=KY|I|169|dir1=north|city1=Hopkinsville}}

|notes=Southern terminus of I-169, formerly known as the Pennyrile Parkway; exit 1 on I-169

}}

{{KYint|exit

|location1=Hopkinsville

|location2=Oak Grove

|mile=85.608

|exit=86

|road={{Jct|state=KY|US-Alt|41|dab1=Hopkinsville|city1=Hopkinsville|city2=Fort Campbell}}

}}

{{KYint|exit

|location=Oak Grove

|mile=88.761

|exit=89

|road={{Jct|state=KY|KY|115|city1=Oak Grove|city2=Pembroke}}

|notes=Serves the Jefferson Davis Monument State Historic Site

}}

{{Jctplace|exit

|river= 

|river_wide=yes

|mile=93.373

|mile2=0.00

|line=yes

|exit=

|place=Kentucky–Tennessee state line

}}

{{TNint|exit

|sspan=57

|county=Montgomery

|cspan=4

|location=Clarksville

|lspan=4

|mile=1.61

|exit=1

|road={{jct|state=TN|Sec|48|city1=Clarksville|location2=Trenton

|notes=Access to Fort Campbell Army Post}}

}}

{{TNint|exit

|mile=4.51

|exit=4

|road={{jct|state=TN|US|79|city1=Clarksville|location2=Guthrie|name1=LG Highway / Wilma Rudolph Boulevard}}

|notes=Access to Austin Peay State University and Tennessee College of Applied Technology at Clarksville}}

{{TNint|exit

|mile=7.95

|exit=8

|road={{jct|state=TN|Sec|237|name1=Hankook Road / Rossview Road}}

|notes=Access to Dunbar Cave State Park

}}

{{TNint|exit

|mile=10.61

|exit=11

|road={{jct|state=TN|SR|76|city1=Clarksville|city2=Adams|name1=Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. Parkway}}

|notes=Access to Port Royal State Park

}}

{{TNint|exit

|county=Robertson

|cspan=2

|location=none

|mile=19.17

|exit=19

|road={{jct|state=TN|Sec|256|name1=Maxey Road|city1=Adams}}

}}

{{TNint|exit

|location1=Pleasant View

|location2=Coopertown

|mile=24.41

|exit=24

|road={{jct|state=TN|SR|49|city1=Springfield|city2=Ashland City}}

}}

{{TNint|exit

|county=Cheatham

|location=none

|mile=31.02

|exit=31

|road={{jct|state=TN|Sec|249|name1=New Hope Road}}

}}

{{TNint|exit

|county=Davidson

|cspan=23

|location=Nashville

|lspan=23

|mile=35.16

|exit=35

|road={{jct|state=TN|US|431|city1=Springfield|city2=Joelton}}

}}

{{TNint|exit

|mile=40.70

|exit=40

|road={{jct|state=TN|Sec|45|name1=Old Hickory Boulevard}}

}}

{{TNint|exit

|mile=43.40

|exit=43

|road={{jct|state=TN|SR|155|name1=Briley Parkway|extra=airport}}

|notes=SR 155 exits 18A-B; access to Nashville International Airport

}}

{{TNint|exit

|mile=44.17

|mile2=44.81

|exit=44

|type=concur

|road={{jct|state=TN|I|65|location1=Louisville|location2=Nashville}}

|notes=Western end of I-65 concurrency; signed as exits 44A (south) and exit 44B (north) eastbound; I-65 exit 88

}}

{{TNint|exit

|mile=45.79

|exit=87

|road={{jct|state=TN|US|431|name1=Trinity Lane}}

}}

{{TNint|exit

|mile=46.42

|mile2=47.05

|exit=46B

|type=concur

|road={{jct|state=TN|I|65|dir1=south|to2=to|I|40|dir2=west|city1=Memphis|location2=Huntsville}}

|notes=Southern end of I-65 concurrency; I-65 exit 86 southbound; signed as exits 46A (I-24 west/I-65 north) and 46B (I-65 south) westbound

}}

{{TNint|exit

|mile=47.63

|mile2=47.93

|exit=47

|road=North First Street / Jefferson Street

}}

{{TNint|exit

|mile=47.93

|exit=47A

|road={{jct|state=TN|US|31E|dir4=north|name1=Ellington Parkway|road|Spring Street}}

}}

{{TNint|exit

|mile=48.43

|mile2=48.51

|exit=48

|road=James Robertson Parkway (US 31 / US 41 / US 431) – State Capitol

}}

{{TNint|exit

|mile=48.90

|exit=49

|road=Korean Vets Boulevard / Shelby Avenue – Nissan Stadium

}}

{{jctbridge|exit

|river=

|mile=49.33

|mile2=49.93

|bridge=Silliman Evans Bridge over the Cumberland River

}}

{{TNint|exit

|mile=49.74

|mile2=50.06

|exit=50

|type=concur

|road={{jct|state=TN|I|40|dir1=west|to2=to|I|65|dir2=south|city1=Memphis|location2=Huntsville}}

|notes=Western end of I-40 concurrency; signed as I-40 exit 211 westbound; signed as exits 50A (I-40 east/I-24 east) and 50B (I-40 west to I-65 south) eastbound

}}

{{TNint|exit

|mile=50.42

|exit=212

|espan=2

|road=Hermitage Avenue (US 70)

|notes=Westbound exit; exit number follows I-40

}}

{{TNint

|mile=50.97

|road=Fesslers Lane

|notes=Eastbound exit

}}

{{TNint|exit

|mile=51.44

|mile2=51.85

|exit=52B

|type=concur

|road={{jct|state=TN|I|40|dir1=east|city1=Knoxville|extra=airport}}

|notes=Eastern end of I-40 concurrency; I-40 exit 213A; access to Nashville International Airport

}}

{{TNint|exit

|mile=51.85

|exit=52

|road={{jct|state=TN|US|41|US|70S|name2=Murfreesboro Road}}

}}

{{TNint|exit

|mile=52.19

|mile2=53.04

|exit=53

|road={{jct|state=TN|I|440|dir1=west|city1=Memphis}}

|notes=Eastern terminus of I-440

}}

{{TNint|exit

|mile=53.70

|exit=54

|road={{jct|state=TN|SR|155|name1=Briley Parkway}}

|notes=SR 155 exits 3A-B

}}

{{TNint|exit

|mile=55.71

|exit=56

|road={{jct|state=TN|Sec|255|name1=Harding Place|extra=airport}}

|notes=Access to Nashville International Airport

}}

{{TNint|exit

|mile=57.02

|exit=57

|road=Haywood Lane – Antioch

|notes=Signed as exits 57A (west) and 57B (east) eastbound

}}

{{TNint|exit

|mile=59.40

|exit=59

|road={{jct|state=TN|SR|254|name1=Bell Road}}

}}

{{TNint|exit

|mile=60.08

|exit=60

|road=Hickory Hollow Parkway / William Turner Parkway

}}

{{TNint|exit

|mile=62.54

|exit=62

|road={{jct|state=TN|Sec|171|name1=Old Hickory Boulevard}}

}}

{{TNint|exit

|county=Rutherford

|cspan=10

|location=La Vergne

|mile=64.55

|exit=64

|road=Waldron Road – La Vergne

}}

{{TNint|exit

|location=Smyrna

|lspan=2

|mile=66.30

|exit=66

|road={{jct|state=TN|Sec|266|dir1=east|name1=Sam Ridley Parkway|city1=Smyrna}}

|notes=Signed as exits 66A (west) and 66B (east) eastbound

}}

{{TNint|exit

|mile=69.90

|exit=70

|road={{jct|state=TN|Sec|102|name1=Nissan Drive / Lee Victory Parkway / Almaville Road|city1=Smyrna}}

}}

{{TNint|exit

|location=none

|mile=74.12

|mile2=75.11

|exit=74

|road={{jct|state=TN|I|840|city1=Memphis|city2=Franklin|city3=Knoxville|city4=Lebanon}}

|notes=Signed as exits 74A (west) and 74B (east); I-840 exits 53A-B; former SR 840

}}

{{TNint|exit

|location=Murfreesboro

|lspan=5

|mile=76.21

|exit=76

|road=Fortress Boulevard / Medical Center Parkway

}}

{{TNint|exit

|mile=77.98

|exit=78

|road={{jct|state=TN|SR|96|city1=Franklin|city2=Murfreesboro}}

|notes=Signed as exits 78A (west) and 78B (east)

}}

{{TNint|exit

|mile=79.80

|exit=80

|road={{jct|state=TN|Sec|99|city1=Murfreesboro}}

}}

{{TNint|exit

|mile=81.23

|exit=81

|road={{jct|state=TN|US|231|city1=Shelbyville|city2=Murfreesboro}}

|notes=Signed as exits 81A (south) and 81B (north) eastbound

}}

{{TNint|exit

|mile=83.58

|exit=84

|road=Joe B. Jackson Parkway

|notes=Signed as exits 84A (south) and 84B (north) eastbound

}}

{{TNint|exit

|location=none

|mile=88.79

|exit=89

|road=Buchanan – Epps Mill Road

}}

{{TNint|exit

|county1=Coffee

|county2=Bedford

|location=none

|mile=96.85

|exit=97

|road={{jct|state=TN|SR|64|name1=Beechgrove Road|city1=Shelbyville}}

}}

{{TNint|exit

|county=Coffee

|cspan=5

|location=none

|mile=105.23

|exit=105

|road={{jct|state=TN|US|41}}

}}

{{TNint|exit

|location=Manchester

|lspan=3

|mile=110.22

|exit=110

|road={{jct|state=TN|SR|53|city1=Manchester|city2=Woodbury}}

}}

{{TNint|exit

|mile=111.23

|exit=111

|road={{jct|state=TN|SR|55|city1=Manchester|city2=Tullahoma|city3=McMinnville}}

|notes=Signed as exits 111A (south) and 111B (north) eastbound

}}

{{TNint|exit

|mile=113.77

|exit=114

|road={{jct|state=TN|US|41|city1=Manchester}}

}}

{{Jctint|exit

|location_special=Arnold AFB

|mile=117.20

|exit=117

|road=Arnold Air Force Base – Tullahoma

}}

{{TNint|exit

|county=Grundy

|cspan=2

|location=Pelham

|mile=127.54

|exit=127

|type=concur

|road={{jct|state=TN|US|64|dir1=west|Sec|50|city1=Pelham|city2=Winchester}}

|notes=West end of US 64 concurrency

}}

{{Jctrestarea|exit

|state=TN

|location=Monteagle

|lspan=3

|restarea=Rest area

}}

{{TNint|exit

|county1=Marion

|county2=Grundy

|mile=134.33

|exit=134

|road={{jct|state=TN|US|41A|city1=Monteagle|city2=Sewanee}}

}}

{{TNint|exit

|county=Marion

|cspan=7

|mile=135.48

|exit=135

|type=concur

|road={{jct|state=TN|to1=To|US|41|dir1=north|city1=Monteagle|city2=Tracy City}}

|notes=Western end of SR 2 concurrency

}}

{{TNint|exit

|location=none

|mile=142.94

|exit=143

|type=concur

|road=Martin Springs Road

|notes=Eastern end of SR 2 concurrency

}}

{{TNint|exit

|location=Kimball

|mile=151.93

|exit=152

|type=concur

|road={{jct|state=TN|US|64|dir1=east|US|72|to3=to|US|41|city1=Kimball|city2=South Pittsburg}}

|notes=Eastern end of US 64 concurrency; western end of SR 27 concurrency

}}

{{TNint|exit

|location=Jasper

|mile=155.62

|exit=155

|road={{jct|state=TN|SR|28|city1=Jasper|city2=Dunlap}}

}}

{{TNint|exit

|location=none

|mile=158.68

|exit=158

|type=concur

|road={{jct|state=TN|Sec|27|dir1=east|location1=Nickajack Dam|city2=Powells Crossroads}}

|notes=Eastern end of SR 27 concurrency

}}

{{jctbridge|exit

|location=none

|mile=160.34

|mile2=160.94

|bridge=Interstate 24 Bridge over Nickajack Lake

}}

{{TNint|exit

|location=Haletown

|mile=161.33

|exit=161

|road={{jct|state=TN|Sec|156|city1=Haletown|city2=New Hope}}

}}

{{jctco|exit|state=TN|county=Hamilton}}

{{Jctplace|exit

|river= 

|river_wide=yes

|mile=166.9

|mile2=0.00

|line=yes

|exit=

|place=Tennessee–Georgia state line

}}

{{GAint|exit

|sspan=2

|county=Dade

|cspan=2

|location=none

|mile=0.847

|mile2=1.63

|exit=167

|road={{jct|state=GA|I|59|dir1=south|location1=Birmingham}}

|notes=Left exit and entrance westbound; exit numbers continue from Tennessee numbering; northern terminus of I-59

}}

{{GAint|exit

|location=none

|mile=3.55

|exit=169

|road={{jct|state=GA|SR|299|to2=to|US|11|city1=Wildwood}}

}}

{{Jctplace|exit

|river= 

|river_wide=yes

|mile=4.13

|mile2=171.0

|line=yes

|exit=

|place=Georgia–Tennessee state line

}}

{{TNint|exit

|sspan=10

|county=Hamilton

|cspan=10

|location=Chattanooga

|lspan=7

|mile=173.7

|exit=174

|road={{jct|state=TN|US|41|US|64|to3=to|US|11|city1=Lookout Valley|city2=Lookout Mountain}}

}}

{{TNint|exit

|mile=175.0

|exit=175

|road=Browns Ferry Road – Lookout Mountain

}}

{{TNint|exit

|mile=178.8

|mile2=179.3

|exit=178

|type=concur

|road={{jct|state=TN|US|27|dir1=north|US|11|US|41|US|64|name4=Broad Street|Sec|58|name5=Market Street|location1=Downtown Chattanooga|city2=Lookout Mountain}}

|notes=Western end of US 27 concurrency; southern terminus of unsigned I-124

}}

{{TNint|exit

|mile=180.0

|exit=180

|type=concur

|road={{jct|state=TN|US|27|dir1=south|to2=to|SR|8|dir2=north|name1=Rossville Boulevard|road|Central Avenue}}

|notes=Eastern end of US 27 concurrency; signed as exits 180A (north) and 180B (south)

}}

{{TNint|exit

|mile=180.9

|exit=181

|road=Fourth Avenue

}}

{{TNint|exit

|mile=181.4

|exit=181A

|type=incomplete

|road={{jct|state=TN|US|41|dir1=south|city1=East Ridge}}

|notes=Eastbound exit and westbound entrance

}}

{{jctplace|exit

|mile=182.0

|place= Missionary Ridge crossing

}}

{{TNint|exit

|location1=Chattanooga

|location2=East Ridge

|mile=183.0

|exit=183A

|road=Belvoir Avenue / Germantown Road

|notes=Signed as exit 183 eastbound

}}

{{TNint|exit

|location=East Ridge

|lspan=2

|mile=184.0

|exit=184

|road=Moore Road

}}

{{TNint|exit

|mile=185.2

|exit=185

|road={{jct|state=TN|I|75|name1={{jct|state=TN|US|74|noshield=yes|dir1=east}}|location1=Atlanta|city2=Knoxville}}

|notes=Eastern terminus; signed as exits 185A (south) and 185B (north); exit 2 on I-75

}}

{{jctbtm|col=8|keys=concur,incomplete}}

{{main|Interstate 124}}

{{Infobox road small

|state=TN

|type=I

|route=124

|length_mi=1.92

|length_ref={{cite web |last=Starks |first=Edward |date=January 27, 2022 |title=Table 2: Auxiliary Routes of the Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways |url=https://www.fhwa.dot.gov/planning/national_highway_system/interstate_highway_system/routefinder/table02.cfm |access-date=March 24, 2023 |work=FHWA Route Log and Finder List |publisher=Federal Highway Administration}}

|formed=November 12, 1958{{cite web |url=https://na4.visualvault.com/app/AASHTO/Default/documentviewer?DhID=224d1f19-37e6-ea11-a98a-ff9beffbfef8&hidemenu=true |title=Correspondence to Herbert M. Bates |last=Johnson |first=A. E. |date=November 12, 1958 |website=VisualVault |publisher=American Association of State Highway Transportation Officials |access-date=August 8, 2023}}

|location=Chattanooga, Tennessee

}}

Interstate 124 (I-124) is an unsigned designation for a short segment of a four-lane controlled-access highway located in Chattanooga, Tennessee. During periods where this {{convert|2|mi|km|adj=mid|-long|spell=in}} segment of US 27 has been signed as I-124, it has served as a spur route of I-24 to downtown Chattanooga. The road segment has not been signed as I-124 since the late 1980s (it is marked on overhead signs and milemarkers as US 27),{{cite news |last = Jolley |first = Harmon |date = July 9, 2004 |title = Where Do Our Interstate Highways Terminate? |url = http://www.chattanoogan.com/2004/7/9/52682/Where-Do-Our-Interstate-Highways-Terminate.aspx |work = The Chattanoogan |access-date = January 16, 2018 |archive-date = July 18, 2018 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20180718205358/http://www.chattanoogan.com/2004/7/9/52682/Where-Do-Our-Interstate-Highways-Terminate.aspx |url-status = live }} and the TDOT official map no longer designates it as I-124, but some TDOT publications still make reference to the designation.{{cite web |author = Staff |publisher = Tennessee Department of Transportation |url = http://www.tdot.state.tn.us/roadprojects/2007/ |title = Fiscal Years 2008-2010 Transportation Improvement Program |date = May 1, 2007 |access-date = March 4, 2012 |archive-date = February 7, 2012 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20120207192727/http://www.tdot.state.tn.us/roadprojects/2007/ |url-status = live }}

{{-}}

{{Infobox road small

|state=KY

|type=BL

|route=24

|location=Paducah, Kentucky

|formed=2002{{citation needed|date=March 2025}}

|length_mi=11.2

|length_ref={{google maps |url=https://maps.google.com/maps?saddr=Unknown+road&daddr=37.085745,-88.5974801+to:Husband+Rd&hl=en&ll=37.052345,-88.623295&spn=0.11782,0.222988&sll=37.013828,-88.592216&sspn=0.007368,0.013937&geocode=FXrENQIdrNG2-g%3BFTHiNQIdGBy4-imzHPucTRB6iDHh7dbj930XQQ%3BFZTGNAId-i64-g&mra=dme&mrsp=2&sz=17&via=1&t=m&z=13 |title=Overview Map of I-24 Bus. |access-date=July 4, 2014 }}

}}

Interstate 24 Business (I-24 Bus.) is an {{convert|11.2|mi|km|adj=on}} business loop of I-24 that travels through downtown Paducah, Kentucky, that begins at I-24 and US 60 at exit 4 and ends at I-24 and KY 1954 at exit 11. Originally designated as Interstate 24 Downtown (I-24 Dwtn.), the route was repurposed as I-24 Bus. in 2002. The highway follows US 60, US 60 Bus., and KY 1954.

Major Intersections

{{jcttop|state=KY|county=McCracken|length_ref=}}

{{KYint

|location=Paducah

|lspan=7

|mile=0.0

|type=concur

|road={{Jct|state=KY|US|60|dir1=west|I|24|name1=Hinkleville Road west}}

|notes=Western terminus; western end of US 60 concurrency; I-24 exit 4

}}

{{KYint

|mile=1.9

|road={{Jct|state=KY|KY|731|dir1=south|name1=32nd Street}}

|notes=Northern terminus of KY 731

}}

{{KYint

|mile=2.4

|type=concur

|road={{Jct|state=KY|US|60|dir1=east|name1=Joe Clifton Drive|extra=hospital}}
{{Jct|state=KY|US-Bus|60|dir1=east|dab1=Paducah}}

|notes=Eastern end of US 60 concurrency; I-24 Bus. east follows US 60 Bus. east; US 60 east serves Baptist Health Paducah

}}

{{KYint

|mile=2.6

|road={{Jct|state=KY|US|45|name1=H.C. Mathis Drive}}

}}

{{KYint

|mile=4.4

|type=concur

|road={{Jct|state=KY|US-Bus|45|dab1=Paducah|dir1=north|name1=8th Street}}

|notes=Western end of US 45 Bus. concurrency

}}

{{KYint

|mile=5.2

|type=concur

|road={{Jct|state=KY|US-Bus|45|dab1=Paducah|dir1=south|name1=Kentucky Avenue}}

|notes=Eastern end of US 45 Bus. concurrency

}}

{{KYint

|mile=8.2

|type=concur

|road={{Jct|state=KY|US-Bus|60|dab1=Paducah|dir1=west}}
{{Jct|state=KY|US|60|US|62}}
{{Jct|state=KY|KY|1954|dir1=east}}

|notes=I-24 Bus. west follows US 60 Bus. west; I-24 Bus. east follows KY 1954 east

}}

{{KYint

|location=Woodlawn-Oakdale

|lspan=2

|mile=8.8

|road={{Jct|state=KY|KY|450}}

}}

{{KYint

|mile=10.9

|road={{Jct|state=KY|KY|2187|dir1=north|name1=Husband Road north}}

|notes=Southern terminus of KY 2187

}}

{{KYint

|location=none

|mile=11.2

|type=concur

|road={{Jct|state=KY|KY|1954|dir1=east|I|24|name1=Husband Road|location1=Kentucky Dam|location2=Nashville|location3=St. Louis}}

|notes=Eastern terminus; eastern end of KY 1954 concurrency; I-24 exit 11

}}

{{jctbtm|keys=concur}}

{{-}}

• {{Portal-inline|U.S. roads}}
• {{Portal-inline|Illinois}}
• {{Portal-inline|Georgia (U.S. state)}}

{{Reflist}}

{{commons category|Interstate 24}}

{{Attached KML|display=title,inline}}

• {{osmrelation-inline|134418}}
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20121011012518/http://highwayexplorer.com/il_EndsPage.php?id=3024§ion=1 Illinois Highway Ends: Interstate 24]
• [https://web.archive.org/web/20030320142352/http://www.tdot.state.tn.us/Maps/front.pdf Official State of Tennessee Road Map]

{{interstates}}

Interstate 24

24

24

Category:Transportation in Williamson County, Illinois

Category:Transportation in Johnson County, Illinois

Category:Transportation in Massac County, Illinois

Category:Transportation in McCracken County, Kentucky

Category:Transportation in Marshall County, Kentucky

Category:Transportation in Livingston County, Kentucky

Category:Transportation in Lyon County, Kentucky

Category:Transportation in Caldwell County, Kentucky

Category:Transportation in Trigg County, Kentucky

Category:Transportation in Christian County, Kentucky

Category:Transportation in Montgomery County, Tennessee

Category:Transportation in Robertson County, Tennessee

Category:Transportation in Cheatham County, Tennessee

Category:Transportation in Davidson County, Tennessee

Category:Transportation in Rutherford County, Tennessee

Category:Transportation in Bedford County, Tennessee

Category:Transportation in Coffee County, Tennessee

Category:Transportation in Grundy County, Tennessee

Category:Transportation in Marion County, Tennessee

Category:Transportation in Hamilton County, Tennessee

Category:Transportation in Dade County, Georgia

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