Alabama DOT (ALDOT) officials recently announced that the reconstruction of I-59/20 corridor through downtown Birmingham is on schedule, with the overall project around 75% to 80% complete.
ALDOT Regional Engineer DeJarvis Leonard recently told WBRC-TV that 1,600 bridge segments have been put in place, with another 700 needed to finish the remaining bridge decks. Leonard says the that bridge erection along the project is about 60% complete. When finished, more than 2,300 precast bridge segments will be erected.
ALDOT initiated the reconstruction of the I-59/I-20 Interchange as part of a larger reinvention of the downtown area into a 24-hour mixed-use district. This $750 million megaproject is by far the most ambitious piece of construction the city has seen. The goal of the project is to reduce traffic congestion, improve overall mobility, and accommodate growth for small businesses.
The construction phase of the project was broken into four phases, which includes the reconstruction of bridges; widening of multiple bridges on I-65; and reconstructing I-65 and the I-59/I-20 interchange ramps. After the demolition of the old mainline bridges, a pair of new 1.25-mile structures are being put into place. Overall, this project includes 65.5 lane-miles and 31 total bridges.
The contracted completion date overall is November 2020, but the contract was built so that the contractor can complete the mainline bridges by mid-March. The contractor can earn a full bonus on the bridges if they come in by Martin Luther King Day of 2020.
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SOURCE: WBRC-TV
