Auburn residents will happy to learn of the new changes coming soon for Moores Mill Road. Anyone who has to travel in that area during the mornings will be thankful for some relief from the frustrating traffic concerns. The city of Auburn plans to replace the current bridge that spans Interstate 85 with a new five lane bridge that will include a middle lane for those turning left onto East University Drive. Bids for the projects are expected to go out in March, with construction hopefully beginning about a month after. This project will take about 12 to 18 month to finish and will cost between $6 million and $8 million, 20% of which the city will be responsible for paying, according to Jeff Ramsey who is the director of the city’s Public Works Department. The remaining 80% of project costs will be paid through ATRIP funds.
Construction of the bridge will be done in phases. The first phase will be widening the bridge by three lanes to the south, then once that is completed, the old bridge will be torn down and the additional two lanes constructed. The bridge will have some decorative flourishes incorporated into its design including decorative railing up top and lighting along with brick inlay for the columns. Jeff Ramsey stated that the new bridge will mimic some of Samford Hall. The new bridge will also include a railed off pedestrian crossing that will tie into the existing trail along Moores Mill Road and East University.
In addition to the new bridge, the project includes creating dual-left turn lanes coming out of Grove Hill Road and a protected left turn lane going onto Grove Hill Road. Moores Mill Road will also be widened to five lanes from the bridge to Moores Mill Creek and, in the other direction, to Dean Road.
The traffic will get worse before getting better, though, as construction is expected to cause further delays. Be sure to consider alternate routes during the construction period.