Stay safe! I think it’s bad if I have to go through Chattanooga or Knoxville. I don’t travel. I haven’t even been out of the state in 30 years.
Chattanooga is a city most definitely underserved by roads. No bypass, no alternate routes to many of the highways. 24, which heads to Nashville and northern Alabama, is almost always a mess in the afternoon.
I avoid Knoxville, though it’s a lot better since they built 640. It’s not a long bypass, but it avoids much of the downtown traffic there. Still, I generally get off the interstate at Rocky Top and take backroads over to US 27, then take that home. I’m not sure that it’s faster, but it’s a nicer drive.