Twenty-three crashes and 16 people hurt since the start of 2025 — that is the toll at the intersection of New Shackle Island Road and Old Drakes Creek Road, and Sumner County now says a fix is finally on the way. Officials are planning a traffic signal and turn lanes at the crossing, which sits near Hendersonville's city limits, and they hope to start construction next summer.
According to News Channel 5 Nashville, nearly half of those 23 crashes caused injuries, and officials are currently working on property appraisals needed for the project. The Tennessee Department of Transportation is reviewing the project designs and coordinating with the Federal Highway Administration, the station reports, while federal grant money is helping pay for the work. Sumner County now expects construction to cost at least $3.5 million.
A Longtime Trouble Spot Getting Worse
This is not the first time the intersection has drawn official attention. Back in 2022, The Tennessean reported that the crossing recorded 23 crashes over a three-year stretch from July 2018 through June 2021 — a similar crash count, though tallied across a much longer window than the current 2025 figures. At the time, Hendersonville and Sumner County were splitting a $9,800 cost to study potential fixes, including a traffic light, turning lane, wider roads, shoulders and additional property, with an engineering firm contracted to help pin down a cost estimate.
Nearby residential growth has been cited repeatedly as a driver of the danger. The Tennessean noted that new subdivisions would make the intersection busier, and the Hendersonville Standard later reported that the crossing had become increasingly hazardous as several residential subdivisions continued to build out — including Durham Farms, which had about 600 homes with another 600 expected in the years following.
Funding Fight Years in the Making
Money for the project has come together in pieces over time. The Tennessean reported that up to $400,000 in federal funding was awarded through the Greater Nashville Regional Council for three Sumner County road projects, including upgrades tied to these two roads, while up to $100,000 through the Spot Safety program could go toward a traffic light. Hendersonville officials had anticipated around a $2 million price tag for the fix, the paper reported.
By 2022, the Hendersonville Standard reported that Sumner County leaders had approved $2.5 million in state and local funding, with the County Commission voting 22 to 1 on Aug. 15 to accept a grant from the Tennessee Department of Transportation. That funding package included $2 million in state revenue plus $250,000 each from the city of Hendersonville and the county's capital projects fund, and the same report pegged the project's estimated cost around $2.2 million — figures that sit well below the at-least-$3.5-million estimate Sumner County cites now. The planned improvements outlined then included a new traffic signal, turn lanes, improved signage, grading and drainage, and a county official said at the time that he had signed a contract with TDOT and expected the project to move forward soon.
A Neighbor Who Has Waited Nearly 20 Years
For residents like Todd Boyte, who has lived around the intersection for nearly 20 years, the announcement is a long time coming. Boyte welcomed the planned improvements and said the lack of infrastructure at the crossing has been a long-standing frustration. He described the area as being in no man's land between Hendersonville and Sumner County, and he has requested a temporary red light be installed before full construction begins.
Hendersonville has flagged other troublesome intersections for future work as well. Local planning documents cited by Main Street Media Tennessee list straightening the intersections at Gallatin Road and Walton Ferry/Old Shackle Island, along with completely rebuilding the intersection of Drakes Creek Road and Stop 30 Road, among the city's planned transportation projects.
For now, New Shackle Island and Old Drakes Creek remains the priority, with appraisals underway and county officials aiming for a summer construction start. NewsChannel 5 says it will continue following the project and provide updates as construction gets underway.
