State Route 73 (SR 73) is west-north state highway in
East Tennessee
East Tennessee is one of the three Grand Divisions of Tennessee defined in state law. Geographically and socioculturally distinct, it comprises approximately the eastern third of the U.S. state of Tennessee. East Tennessee consists of 33 count ...
. For most of its length, it is an unsigned companion route to
U.S. Route 321 (US 321).
Route description
SR 73 begins at an
interchange with
Interstate 40 (I-40)
concurrent
Concurrent means happening at the same time. Concurrency, concurrent, or concurrence may refer to:
Law
* Concurrence, in jurisprudence, the need to prove both ''actus reus'' and ''mens rea''
* Concurring opinion (also called a "concurrence"), a ...
with
U.S. Route 321 (US 321) and
SR 95 south of
Oak Ridge and north of
Lenoir City. The three highways head south to an
intersection
In mathematics, the intersection of two or more objects is another object consisting of everything that is contained in all of the objects simultaneously. For example, in Euclidean geometry, when two lines in a plane are not parallel, their i ...
with
US 70 and
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 ...
in Lenoir City. They then continue southeast to intersect
US 11 in Lenoir City. SR 95 leaves US 321 and SR 73 south of Lenoir City, The two highways head east into
Blount County traveling just south of
Friendsville. On the edge of
Maryville the highways have a short concurrency with
SR 335 and intersect
US 129, in downtown they intersect
US 411 and
SR 33. The highways then proceed out of Maryville and intersect
Foothills Parkway
The Foothills Parkway is a national parkway which traverses the foothills of the northern Great Smoky Mountains in East Tennessee, located in the southeastern United States. The 72.1-mile (114 km) parkway will connect U.S. Route 129 (U.S. ...
's western segment in
Chilhowee, turn south and then back east to
Townsend Townsend (pronounced tounʹ-zənd) or Townshend may refer to:
Places United States
*Camp Townsend, National Guard training base in Peekskill, New York
*Townsend, Delaware
*Townsend, Georgia
*Townsend, Massachusetts, a New England town
** Townsend ...
where the highways intersect
SR 73 Scenic. US 321 and mainline SR 73 turn north and SR 73 Scenic heads east into 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, whi ...
. The highways then continue northeasterly through
Wears Valley to
Pigeon Forge
Pigeon Forge is a mountain resort city in Sevier County, Tennessee, in the southeastern United States. As of the 2020 census, the city had a total population of 6,343. Situated just 5 miles (8 km) north of Great Smoky Mountains National Par ...
where they turn south onto
US 441 and travel concurrent for to
Gatlinburg
Gatlinburg is a mountain resort city in Sevier County, Tennessee, United States. It is located southeast of Knoxville and had a population of 3,944 at the 2010 Census and a U.S. Census population of 3,577 in 2020. It is a popular vacation resort ...
(just before Gatlinburg, they have an interchange with
Gatlinburg Bypass
The Gatlinburg Bypass (also known as Parkway Bypass or U.S. 441 Bypass) is a bypass of the resort city of Gatlinburg in Sevier County, Tennessee. The route is owned and maintained by the National Park Service and is considered part of th ...
), where SR 73 and US 321 turn east and US 441 heads south. They then absorb and begin a concurrency with
SR 32 in
Cosby and intersect
Foothills Parkway
The Foothills Parkway is a national parkway which traverses the foothills of the northern Great Smoky Mountains in East Tennessee, located in the southeastern United States. The 72.1-mile (114 km) parkway will connect U.S. Route 129 (U.S. ...
's eastern segment. SR 73 then leaves US 321 and SR 32 south of
Newport. It then has a second interchange with I-40 and heads northerly to terminate at
US 25 and
US 70 on the east side of Newport.
Between Lenoir City and the second intersection with SR 32 in Cosby, SR 73 is an unsigned primary highway designated east–west. For the rest of its length, it is a signed secondary highway designated north–south.
Junction list
Scenic route
State Route 73 Scenic (SR 73 Scenic) is a spur route of SR 73 in
Blount and
Sevier counties in the
eastern portion of
Tennessee
Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...
. It serves as a connector route into 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, whi ...
. The road runs from
Townsend Townsend (pronounced tounʹ-zənd) or Townshend may refer to:
Places United States
*Camp Townsend, National Guard training base in Peekskill, New York
*Townsend, Delaware
*Townsend, Georgia
*Townsend, Massachusetts, a New England town
** Townsend ...
to southwest of
Gatlinburg
Gatlinburg is a mountain resort city in Sevier County, Tennessee, United States. It is located southeast of Knoxville and had a population of 3,944 at the 2010 Census and a U.S. Census population of 3,577 in 2020. It is a popular vacation resort ...
. The route is also called Fighting Creek Gap Road
from US 441 to the Elkmont Campground entrance and Little River Gorge Road
to the Towsend Entrance Road. The Great Smoky Mountains National Park, as well as many locals, often refer to this stretch of park road as "Little River Road" as this road follows the former roadbed of the
Little River Railroad along the
Little River
Little River may refer to several places:
Australia Streams New South Wales
*Little River (Dubbo), source in the Dubbo region, a tributary of the Macquarie River
* Little River (Oberon), source in the Oberon Shire, a tributary of Coxs River (Haw ...
from the Townsend entrance to the Park to
Elkmont.
It begins at
US 321
U.S. Route 321 (US 321) is a spur of U.S. Route 21. It runs for from Hardeeville, South Carolina to Lenoir City, Tennessee; with both serving as southern termini. It reaches its northernmost point at Elizabethton, Tennessee. Because ...
and mainline SR 73 in
Townsend Townsend (pronounced tounʹ-zənd) or Townshend may refer to:
Places United States
*Camp Townsend, National Guard training base in Peekskill, New York
*Townsend, Delaware
*Townsend, Georgia
*Townsend, Massachusetts, a New England town
** Townsend ...
and heads east into the Great Smoky Mountains National Park and ends its signed portion at Laurel Creek Road which goes to
Cades Cove
Cades Cove is an isolated valley located in the Tennessee section of the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. The valley was home to numerous settlers before the formation of the national park. Today Cades Cove, the single most popular destinati ...
. The unsigned portion begins and continues through the park to end at
US 441
U.S. Route 441 (US 441) is a auxiliary route of U.S. Route 41. It extends from US 41 in Miami, Florida to US 25W in Rocky Top, Tennessee. Between its termini, US 441 travels through the states of Florida, Georgia, North ...
in the park south of Gatlinburg, It then becomes signed again and turns north on to US 441/SR 71 and follows US 441/SR 71 for 2.7 miles to US 321/SR 73 in downtown Gatlinburg where it ends.
TDOT has this route internally designated as State Route 337 (SR 337).
SR 73 Scenic was formerly a portion of SR 73, which was moved to US 321 when that route was extended to the area in 1981.
Despite being signed Secondary on TDOT maps, in Gatlinburg, State Route 73 Scenic is signed Primary with the concurrency of U.S. 441/ SR 71 throughout the Great Smoky Mountains National Park. It is also signed as Primary along East Parkway (US 321).
[Sign located near 200 East Parkway across the road from Clarion Pointe Downtown Gatlinburg Hotel on a light pole.]
;Junctions
See also
*
*
References
{{reflist
073
Transportation in Sevier County, Tennessee
Maryville, Tennessee
Townsend, Tennessee