Newport Bypass Delayed, Helene To Blame

If you are one of the motorists who has to deal with the traffic backups in downtown Newport during the afternoon, you will be dealing with those backups for quite a bit longer. The US 321 Newport Bypass is designed to take traffic coming to and from the Parrottsville and Greeneville area away from downtown Newport, easing traffic congestion downtown. The bypass had been originally slated to be completed last fall, but work has slowed on the road. Newport Mayor Trey Dykes says you can thank Hurricane Helene for that.

At the Cocke County Partnership’s annual Legislative Breakfast on Friday, Dykes stated that with the damage caused to I-40 due to Helene, TDOT has had to move resources for the Newport bypass to the work being down to rebuild I-40 east between Hartford and the NC state line. Mayor Dykes said the completion for the Newport Bypass is now slated for sometime in the middle of 2027.