Photos courtesy of Alabama Department of Transportation.
ALDOT has reopened the I-59 northbound ramps at Exit 141.
Traffic began flowing on the reopened exit and entrance ramps June 26, according to ALDOT. The ramps had been closed since May 18 as part of the ongoing I-59 widening project.
Contractor Wiregrass Construction Co. was incentivized to reopen the ramps within 40 days of the closure and did so ahead of schedule, ALDOT said.
“ALDOT appreciates the contractor’s diligence to reopen the ramps quickly to minimize the impact of the ongoing I-59 enhancements,” the department said in a release.
The May closure marked a key phase in widening I-59 to three lanes in each direction between the Interstate 459 interchange and Exit 141. When the ramps closed, ALDOT also shifted I-59 northbound traffic onto the left two lanes to allow crews to work on the outside lane, creating a temporary traffic pattern for vehicles merging from I-459 north onto I-59 north.
ALDOT has reopened the I-59 northbound ramps at Exit 141.
Wiregrass Construction now has about three months remaining to open the widened I-59 northbound lanes to their new three-lane configuration. Completing that work within the deadline would earn the contractor a $1 million incentive, ALDOT said. The company met similar incentivized deadlines last fall when it opened the I-59 southbound exit ramps and the widened southbound section of the interstate.
The overall project, valued at $70.37 million, is expected to be complete by early 2027, according to ALDOT.
ALDOT is encouraging motorists to use alternate routes and adjust arrival and departure times when possible near the project area while work continues.
Alabama Department of Transportation contributed to this report.
