Toll tale

Would you pay a toll to drive home from work on Charlotte Pike? You might have if you lived in Nashville in the nineteenth century. The Tennessean recently recounted the demolition of the Charlotte Turnpike tollgate, which was located near Sylvan Park at 3307 Charlotte Pike, in 1957 and reported about the origin of toll roads in the city.

Several arterial roads exiting the downtown area were toll roads, and the tolls paid served to help the city grow. The article notes that the original 10 miles of Charlotte Pike were estimated to cost $60,000 to build sometime between 1835 and 1840. That would be an enormous amount of money in 2006 dollars.

Toll roads have also recently been in the news as a possible solution by TDOT for financing future road construction in Tennessee, though it doesn't sound like road-use fees are on the way anytime soon.