Interstate 3 (I-3), the 3rd Infantry Division Highway, is a proposed

Interstate Highway The Dwight D. Eisenhower National System of Interstate and Defense Highways, commonly known as the Interstate Highway System, is a network of controlled-access highways that forms part of the National Highway System in the United States. T ...

in the United States to run from

Savannah, Georgia Savannah ( ) is the oldest city in the U.S. state of Georgia and is the county seat of Chatham County. Established in 1733 on the Savannah River, the city of Savannah became the British colonial capital of the Province of Georgia and later t ...

, north to

Augusta, Georgia Augusta ( ), officially Augusta–Richmond County, is a consolidated city-county on the central eastern border of the U.S. state of Georgia. The city lies across the Savannah River from South Carolina at the head of its navigable portion. Georg ...

, and

Knoxville, Tennessee Knoxville is a city in and the county seat of Knox County in the U.S. state of Tennessee. As of the 2020 United States census, Knoxville's population was 190,740, making it the largest city in the East Tennessee Grand Division and the state ...

. The roadway was proposed in the same federal highway measure that gave birth to a proposal for I-14.

History

In 2005, the Safe, Accountable, Flexible, Efficient Transportation Equity Act: A Legacy for Users (SAFETEA-LU) was signed into law by then-President

George W. Bush George Walker Bush (born July 6, 1946) is an American politician who served as the 43rd president of the United States from 2001 to 2009. A member of the Republican Party, Bush family, and son of the 41st president George H. W. Bush, he ...

. The act included the proposed corridors for the planned I-14 (specifically as the 14th Amendment Highway), and I-3 (as the 3rd Infantry Division Highway). The legislation did not provide the official numbering, nor did it provide funding for the highways. The proposed numbering of the highway does not follow the pattern of the existing Interstate Highway grid but is noted to salute and honor the Third Infantry Division of the

United States Army The United States Army (USA) is the land warfare, land military branch, service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight Uniformed services of the United States, U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army o ...

, based at

Fort Stewart Fort Stewart is a United States Army post in the U.S. state of Georgia. It lies primarily in Liberty and Bryan counties, but also extends into smaller portions of Evans, Long and Tattnall counties. The population was 11,205 at the 2000 census. ...

, near Savannah, Georgia. According to the

Georgia Department of Transportation The Georgia Department of Transportation (GDOT) is the organization in charge of developing and maintaining all state and federal roadways in the U.S. state of Georgia. In addition to highways, the department also has a limited role in developi ...

, the existing Savannah River Parkway, which carries the unsigned designations SR 555 and SR 565, is open to traffic. It begins just northwest of Savannah at the intersection of

I-95 Interstate 95 (I-95) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the East Coast of the United States, running from US Route 1 (US 1) in Miami, Florida, to the Houlton–Woodstock Border Crossing between Maine and the Canadi ...

and SR 21/ SR 30. It travels northwesterly along SR 21, paralleling the Savannah River, to Millen, where it meets US 25. From Millen, the roadway follows US 25 to I-520 in Augusta. A western branch of the Savannah River Parkway travels from I-16 south of Statesboro north and northwestward (following US 25) to meet the main parkway roadway in Millen. The proposal currently faces local opposition from groups concerned about the environmental impact of the Interstate Highway. No date for construction of the highway has been set. The federal government began a study of the proposed route in July 2010. In early 2012, the

Federal Highway Administration The Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) is a division of the United States Department of Transportation that specializes in highway transportation. The agency's major activities are grouped into two programs, the Federal-aid Highway Program ...

released a report to the

United States Congress The United States Congress is the legislature of the federal government of the United States. It is bicameral, composed of a lower body, the House of Representatives, and an upper body, the Senate. It meets in the U.S. Capitol in Washi ...

noting the potential financial and environmental costs of the highway as well as the public opposition.

Route description

The actual route of I-3 is unknown. However, the 2005 SAFETEA-LU legislation indicated that in Georgia, I-3 would follow the existing Savannah River Parkway from Savannah to Augusta. Due to the difficulties of building a new highway through the

Appalachian Mountains The Appalachian Mountains, often called the Appalachians, (french: Appalaches), are a system of mountains in eastern to northeastern North America. The Appalachians first formed roughly 480 million years ago during the Ordovician Period. The ...

, the highway's proposed route north of Augusta is less clear. In early 2008, officials introduced the possibility of routing I-3 through

Greenwood, South Carolina Greenwood is a city in and the county seat of Greenwood County, South Carolina, United States. The population in the 2020 United States Census was 22,545 down from 23,222 at the 2010 census. The city is home to Lander University. Geography and ...

and continuing on to Greenville. Other potential routes continue in Georgia along US 441, US 129 (along the Dragon, an stretch of road in North Carolina and Tennessee adjoining the

Great Smoky Mountains National Park Great Smoky Mountains National Park is an American national park in the southeastern United States, with parts in North Carolina and Tennessee. The park straddles the ridgeline of the Great Smoky Mountains, part of the Blue Ridge Mountains, wh ...

with 318 curves), or SR 77. The proposed numbering of the highway does not fit within the usual conventions of the existing Interstate Highway grid, where primary north-south highways are assigned odd numbers, and such odd route numbers increase from west to east. Under the normal Interstate Highway grid, I-3 should instead be located on the West Coast between the Pacific Ocean and

I-5 Interstate 5 (I-5) is the main north–south Interstate Highway on the West Coast of the United States, running largely parallel to the Pacific coast of the contiguous U.S. from Mexico to Canada. It travels through the states of Californi ...

. All odd numbers between

I-75 Interstate 75 (I-75) is a major north–south Interstate Highway in the Great Lakes and Southeastern regions of the United States. As with most Interstates that end in 5, it is a major cross-country, north–south route, traveling from St ...

and

are already assigned, but most them are confined to states well north of the proposed route. The 2017 approval of second I-87 in North Carolina in addition to the I-87 in New York State may indicate willingness to duplicate other north-south route numbers.

References

External links

2005 SAFETEA-LU legislation, from the Library of Congress

Third Infantry Division Highway Corridor Study

U.S. DOT - 3rd Infantry Division Highway Corridor Study: Third Meeting of the Expert Working Group

Georgia DOT - Savannah River Parkway description

{{DEFAULTSORT:I03 03 03 03

History

Route description

See also

References

External links