Colbert County, Ala., residents look over five options to improve rail traffic
Written by RT&S Staff
Enjoying fresh air, residents of Colbert County, Ala., viewed options to remove rail traffic from the street level. Due to the coronavirus, officials held the public meeting outside at the Colbert County Courthouse, and the design choices included four railroad overpasses in Sheffield, Ala., and one underpass in Tuscumbia, Ala.
Back in June during a stakeholders meeting, the top two picks were an overpass branching off Montgomery Avenue at an angle to First Street and an overpass that started on Cox Boulevard and ended on Avalon Avenue. Norfolk Southern likes the Montgomery Avenue option, as does Colbert County Commissioner Tommy Barnes. The three other alternatives are the Montgomery Grade Separated project, which also runs along Montgomery Avenue but includes more elevated portions, the Columbia Extension, which involves a two-lane overpass over tracks on Columbia Avenue, and an underpass that begins on Commons Street in Tuscumbia.
The Columbia Extension, which will cost just over $9.7 million, is the least expensive of the five. The Montgomery Grade Separated choice will cost almost $19.5 million and the Montgomery Extension could cost as much as $17 million. The estimate for the two-lane overpass solution comes in at just over $11.6 million while the underpass would cost about $15.8 million.
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