Interstate 65 in Tennessee

Interstate 65 (I-65) is part of the Interstate Highway System that runs 887.30 miles (1,427.97 km) north–south from Mobile, Alabama, to Gary, Indiana. In Tennessee, I-65 traverses the middle portion of the state, running from Ardmore at the Alabama border to the Kentucky border near Portland. The route serves the state capital and largest city of Nashville, along with many of its suburbs. Outside of urban areas, the Interstate bypasses most cities and towns that it serves, instead providing access via state and U.S. Highways. The Interstate passes through the Highland Rim and Nashville Basin physiographic regions of Tennessee, and is often used as the dividing line between the eastern and western portions of the former.

Of the four states which I-65 runs through, the segment in Tennessee is the shortest, at 121.71 miles (195.87 km) long. I-65 parallels the older U.S. Route 31 (US 31) and US 31W corridors for its entire length in Tennessee. The first section of Interstate Highway constructed in Tennessee under the Federal-Aid Highway Act of 1956 was the southernmost section of I-65, opened in 1958. The Interstate was completed between Nashville and the Alabama state line in 1967, and the final section, located in Nashville, opened in 1973. Since its completion, the rapid growth of the Nashville metropolitan area, as well as the general increase in traffic, has necessitated many widening and reconstruction projects. I-65 contains the first high-occupancy vehicle lanes constructed in Tennessee, as well as the widest stretch of road in the state. From 1971 to 2000, the Interstate had one auxiliary route, I-265, which was decommissioned when I-65 was rerouted to reduce congestion in Nashville.