Editing Interstate 24 (section)

{{Short description|Interstate Highway in Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Georgia}}
{{Redirect|I-24|the submarines of the Japanese Imperial Navy|Japanese submarine I-24}}
{{Use mdy dates|date=June 2022}}
{{Use American English|date=March 2023}}
{{Infobox road
| country = USA
| route = 24
| type = I
| map = {{maplink-road|from=Interstate 24.map}}
| map_custom = yes
| map_notes = I-24 highlighted in red
| length_mi = 316.36
| length_ref = <ref name="fhwa">{{cite web |last=Starks |first=Edward |date=January 27, 2022 |title=Table 1: Main 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/table01.cfm |access-date=March 23, 2023 |work=FHWA Route Log and Finder List |publisher=[[Federal Highway Administration]]}}</ref>
| established = August 14, 1957<ref name="AASHO-1957"/>
| direction_a = West
| terminus_a = {{Jct|state=IL|I|57}} in [[Pulleys Mill, Illinois|Pulleys Mill, IL]]
| junction = <!-- Major junctions only; Only ten most major intersections and cities belong here; please read [[WP:USRD/STDS]] for more info -->
*{{Jct|state=KY|I|69}} from [[Calvert City, Kentucky|Calvert City, KY]] to [[Eddyville, Kentucky|Eddyville, KY]]
*{{Jct|state=TN|I|65}} in [[Nashville, Tennessee|Nashville, TN]]
*{{Jct|state=TN|I|40}} in Nashville, TN
*{{Jct|state=TN|US|41}} in Nashville, TN
*{{Jct|state=GA|I|59}} near [[Wildwood, Georgia|Wildwood, GA]]
*{{Jct|state=TN|US|27}} in [[Chattanooga, Tennessee|Chattanooga, TN]]
| direction_b = East
| terminus_b = {{Jct|state=TN|I|75|US|74}} in [[East Ridge, Tennessee|East Ridge, TN]]
| states = {{flatlist|
*[[Illinois]]
*[[Kentucky]]
*[[Tennessee]]
*[[Georgia (U.S. state)|Georgia]]
}}
| counties = {{plainlist|1=
*'''IL''': [[Williamson County, Illinois|Williamson]], [[Johnson County, Illinois|Johnson]], [[Massac County, Illinois|Massac]]
*'''KY''': [[McCracken County, Kentucky|McCracken]], [[Marshall County, Kentucky|Marshall]], [[Livingston County, Kentucky|Livingston]], [[Lyon County, Kentucky|Lyon]], [[Caldwell County, Kentucky|Caldwell]], [[Trigg County, Kentucky|Trigg]], [[Christian County, Kentucky|Christian]]
*'''TN''': [[Montgomery County, Tennessee|Montgomery]], [[Robertson County, Tennessee|Robertson]], [[Cheatham County, Tennessee|Cheatham]], [[Davidson County, Tennessee|Davidson]], [[Rutherford County, Tennessee|Rutherford]], [[Bedford County, Tennessee|Bedford]], [[Coffee County, Tennessee|Coffee]], [[Grundy County, Tennessee|Grundy]], [[Marion County, Tennessee|Marion]], [[Hamilton County, Tennessee|Hamilton]]
*'''GA''': [[Dade County, Georgia|Dade]]
}}
| browse = {{il browse|previous_type=IL|previous_route=23|route=IL|next_type=US|next_route=24}}
{{ky browse|previous_type=US|previous_route=23|route=KY|next_type=US|next_route=25}}
{{tn browse|previous_type=SR|previous_route=23|route=&nbsp;TN&nbsp;|next_type=SR|next_route=24}}
{{ga browse|previous_type=SR|previous_route=23|route=GA|next_type=SR|next_route=24}}
{{ga browse|previous_type=SR|previous_route=408|route=GA SR&nbsp;409|next_type=SR|next_route=410}}
}}
'''Interstate&nbsp;24''' ('''I-24''') is an [[Interstate Highway]] in the [[Midwestern United States|Midwestern]] and [[Southeastern United States|Southeastern]] United States. It runs diagonally from [[Interstate 57|I-57]], {{convert|10|mi|km}} south of [[Marion, Illinois]], to [[Chattanooga, Tennessee]], at [[Interstate 75|I-75]]. It travels through Illinois, Kentucky, Tennessee, and Georgia. As an even-numbered Interstate, it is signed as an east–west route, though the route follows a more southeast–northwest routing, passing through [[Nashville, Tennessee]]. The numbering deviates from the standard Interstate Highway System grid, lying further north than its number would indicate west of Nashville. The short segment within Georgia bears the [[unsigned highway|unsigned designation]] '''State Route 409''' ('''SR&nbsp;409''').  

I-24 between Nashville and Chattanooga is part of a longer north–south freight corridor which runs between Chicago and [[Atlanta]]. The Interstate has facilitated the rapid growth of the largest suburban corridor in the [[Nashville metropolitan area]], which runs for more than {{convert|30|mi|km}} southeast of the city and is considered the most congested stretch of highway in the state. The stretch through Chattanooga also experiences severe congestion, due to an unusually high volume of truck traffic.<ref>{{cite news |last = Pare |first = Mike |date = February 15, 2015 |title = Forget trains. Chattanooga is No. 1 in the nation for truck traffic |url = https://www.timesfreepress.com/news/business/aroundregion/story/2015/feb/15/truck-traffic-troubles-scenic-city/288113/ |work = [[Chattanooga Times Free Press]] |access-date = January 11, 2022 |archive-date = January 11, 2022 |archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20220111091902/https://www.timesfreepress.com/news/business/aroundregion/story/2015/feb/15/truck-traffic-troubles-scenic-city/288113/ |url-status = live }}</ref> The stretch of I-24 across the [[Cumberland Plateau]], commonly known as "[[Monteagle Mountain]]", is considered one of the most hazardous stretches of highway in the US, particularly for trucks, due to its steep descents, which measure a maximum of six-percent [[grade (slope)|grade]].

As proposed by the [[Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956]], the western terminus of I-24 was originally located in Nashville. Most of the route between Nashville and Chattanooga was constructed in the 1960s, with the final section opening in 1971. After extensive lobbying from local politicians, the Bureau of Public Roads, the predecessor agency to the [[Federal Highway Administration]], authorized an extension of I-24 to its present-day western terminus in [[Pulleys Mill, Illinois]], in 1964. As a result, I-24 was the last mainline Interstate Highway in Tennessee and Kentucky to be completed, with the last sections in the two states opening in 1978 and 1980, respectively.