Interstate 24: Chattanooga to Nashville – Tennessee

Traveling between Chattanooga and Nashville on Interstate 24 offers one of Tennessee’s most diverse and memorable interstate drives. Covering about 127 miles, this stretch of I-24 stitches together urban skylines, historic valleys, river crossings, and mountain ridges — all in a single westbound run across the Volunteer State. Let’s break down what we see and what to watch for along the way.

We begin our journey in Chattanooga, merging onto I-24 westbound from U.S. Highway 27 on the southwest fringe of downtown. This initial leg gives us a fantastic vantage point of the Tennessee River, skirting past Moccasin Bend — a National Historic Landmark that traces Native American settlements and Civil War sites. Just past the U.S. Highway 41 crossing at Lookout Valley, I-24 briefly dips into Georgia, offering a quick hello before swinging back into Tennessee near the community of Whiteside. This little hop into Georgia is a quirk many first-time travelers don’t expect but adds a fun geographical twist to an otherwise Tennessee-centric drive.

Rolling westward, we cross the Tennessee River into Jasper and Kimball, gateway towns that welcome us to the approach of the Cumberland Plateau. Here, I-24 tackles some of its most dramatic scenery and engineering feats. As we climb Monteagle Mountain, the interstate splits wide — so wide, in fact, that the median in places spans more than a mile. This stretch holds bragging rights as one of the widest medians in the entire Interstate Highway System. For road buffs, it’s a must-see. Reaching the summit at Monteagle, we catch glimpses of forested ridges before descending the west slope on a curvy 4% grade. Drivers should stay alert here, especially during wet weather, but the views make every mile worthwhile.

Beyond the plateau, the route straightens out past Pelham and speeds northwest through the rolling fields of Manchester. Manchester is famous for hosting the Bonnaroo Music Festival each summer, drawing tens of thousands of music fans who exit I-24 for a weekend of tunes and Tennessee hospitality. This stretch also serves as a corridor to Lynchburg, home of the iconic Jack Daniel’s Distillery — a worthy detour if time allows.

Continuing northbound, I-24 delivers us into Murfreesboro, one of the fastest-growing cities in the state and a hub of Civil War history. Here we meet the interchange with Interstate 840, offering bypass access to the broader Nashville area. We press on into the Nashville Metro, passing the communities of Smyrna and La Vergne. For travelers, these suburbs blend the ease of big-city proximity with local eats and pit stops to refuel both car and crew.

As we near our final destination, I-24 weaves through the busy southern corridor of Nashville. We cross interchanges with TN-171 and TN-254 before swinging by Nashville International Airport via TN-255. Briley Parkway (TN-155) loops us conveniently to other city sectors if we’re headed elsewhere. Our ride wraps up at the eastern junction of Interstate 440, a loop route guiding us seamlessly onto westbound I-440 and deeper into Nashville’s urban core.

Whether you’re heading for a show on Broadway, a Titans game at Nissan Stadium, or just continuing your trek through Middle Tennessee, Interstate 24 from Chattanooga to Nashville blends scenery, history, and big-city excitement into one memorable drive. It’s an essential piece of Tennessee’s highway experience, and one we recommend taking at least once — with the windows down and your favorite playlist on full blast.