RES2021-04: Opioid Crisis and Transportation Investments in Tennessee

According to the Tennessee Department of Health’s Annual Overdose Report prepared by the Office of Informatics and Analytics, overdose deaths related to opioid use has shown a steady increase since 2013 regardless of age or race. Couple this with the fact that nearly 93% of the state is rural according to the 2010 census and one can see the potential for health disparities across the state, especially when considering the challenges with providing access to treatment for opioid use. One of the key challenges identified in treatment is access to treatment facilities; thus, transportation, but not just the extent of roadway coverage, is a critical component to improving the situation. In this project, the research team plans to assess the current needs and limitations with regard to treatment accessibility across the state given current transportation mechanisms in place. Then, the team will evaluate and prioritize existing and emerging transportation options (transit, mobility on demand, infrastructure, etc.) through case study analysis of a set of diverse communities that will inform recommendations for Tennessee Department of Transportation (TDOT) and other transportation managers across the state to mitigate the opioid epidemic in Tennessee. The research team sees this project as a first attempt at an approach to model and prioritize options for transportation investment to address the opioid issue which plagues many states and there is great potential for future, additional research in this area.

• Record URL:
  • https://www.tn.gov/content/dam/tn/tdot/long-range-planning/research/final-reports/2021-final-reports-and-summaries/RES2021-04%20Final%20Report.pdf

Language

• English

Project

• Status: Completed
• Funding: $ 124997
• Contract Numbers:

  RES2021-04

• Sponsor Organizations:

  Tennessee Department of Transportation

  James K. Polk Building
  Fifth and Deaderick Street
  Nashville, TN  United States  37243-0349
• Project Managers:

  Owens , Ashley

• Performing Organizations:

  Vanderbilt University

  Box 96-B
  Nashville, TN  United States  37235
• Principal Investigators:

  Camp, Janey V

• Start Date: 20200901
• Expected Completion Date: 20220831
• Actual Completion Date: 20230531
• USDOT Program: Transportation, Planning, Research, and Development

Subject/Index Terms

• TRT Terms: Access; Case studies; Drug abuse; Investments; Medical treatment; Recommendations; Rural areas; Transportation planning
• Geographic Terms: Tennessee
• Subject Areas: Planning and Forecasting; Society; Transportation (General);

Filing Info

• Accession Number: 01754378
• Record Type: Research project
• Source Agency: Tennessee Department of Transportation
• Contract Numbers: RES2021-04
• Files: RIP, STATEDOT
• Created Date: Oct 9 2020 3:51PM