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Local officials and officials with the Alabama Department of Transportation addressed Chamber members July 20 at the 2017 Transportation Summit held at the Tuscaloosa River Market.

Presented by Burk-Kleinpeter, Inc., the event included updates from Bruce Higginbotham, City Engineer and Interim City Adminstrator for the City of Northport; Tera Tubbs, Executive Director, Infrastructure and Public Services for the City of Tuscaloosa; Nick Crane and Brad Darden with the Alabama Department of Transportation; and Dr. Shashi Nambisan, Executive Director of the Alabama Transportation Institute at the University of Alabama.

Higginbotham kicked off the event by discussing the Mitt Lary Road project, explaining to the sold-out crowd the project had addressed a number of problems.

"The project improved the roadway in the fastest growing area of the city," Higginbotham said.

I-20/59 & McFarland Blvd. Slide: ALDOT.

Representing the City of Tuscaloosa, Tera Tubbs explained one of the major projects the city looks to complete in the near future is the McWright's Ferry Road projects, which will let for bids in November 2018. With a two-year construction period, the project is expected to be complete in 2021, and will features a four-lane divided roadway and a 12-foot shared use path.

Tubbs also updated the crowd on the Martin Luther King Jr./Jack Warner Parkway Connector project; a $23,300,000 Tuscaloosa County Road Improvement Project that will enter the bid phase in 2019 and has an estimated completion date of September 2020. "This project will open up the West End of the City for economic development," Tubbs explained.

Tubbs recommended residents visit the city's Capital Projects Data Portal at data.tuscaloosa.com to keep informed of current projects.

Brad Darden, Pre-Construction Engineer for ALDOT, discussed the Single Point Urban Interchange planned for McFarland Boulevard at I-20/59. The new design will feature a modern, crimson painted bridge to replace the current design, allowing for fewer accidents and a larger traffic volume.

I-20/59 & McFarland Blvd. Slide: ALDOT.

The day's final presenter, Dr. Shashi Nambisan, told attendees how the Alabama Transportation Institute would foster economic development in the area by leveraging investments and becoming the "go-to" organization for transportation.

Nambisan said key issues addressed would include safety, aging infrastructure, reliability, resiliency and funding.

The 2017 Transportation Summit was presented by Burk-Kleinpeter, Inc.

Gold Sponsors for the event were Hunt Refining Company; McGiffert and Associates, LLC; Southland International Trucks, Inc.; TTL, Inc.; and WTI Transport, Inc.

Table Sponsors for the event were Alagasco; JamisonMoneyFarmer PC; Rumsey Environmental; Sentell Engineering, Inc.; and Walker Associates, Inc.

For more information on transportation updates in Tuscaloosa County, please visit the Tuscaloosa County Road Improvement Commission website.