Known for its rush hour congestion and high accident rates, Highway 280 is recognized as one of Alabama's busiest non-interstate roadways.

To ease the burden of motorists traveling the popular retail corridor, the Alabama Department of Transportation (ALDOT) is widening a section of the roadway from three to four lanes in each direction, increasing the overall capacity by 30 percent.

Jon Paepcke/ALDOT photo

"There are backups throughout a large portion of the day," said DeJarvis Leonard, ALDOT east central region engineer. "The average daily traffic of U.S. 280 in this location is over 120,000. The widening of this route will largely help daily commuters but also will be beneficial for those traveling to and from Birmingham."

The $53 million undertaking begins in the city of Homewood at Hollywood Boulevard and ends at I-459 in the city of Birmingham. The distance is approximately 4 mi.

"This section is extremely busy for daily commuters traveling to and from Birmingham, local traffic and also traffic from elsewhere passing through the city," said Leonard. "Traffic has primarily been affected by nightly lane closures."

The contractor, APAC-Alabama Inc., has overseen similar projects in the area for decades. It was involved in the past two major widening efforts on U.S. 280 in the past 20 years in the same location. One of the highlights of this latest project involves replacing the bridge on Pump House Road, which forced a major traffic shutdown in November.

"Completely closing all lanes of U.S. 280 eastbound from Friday night until Sunday afternoon was very significant," said Leonard. "ALDOT used multiple mechanisms to notify the public of the impending closure.

"Signal timing was adjusted on alternate routes to aid in the flow of traffic," he added. "The combined effort of all parties involved made the closure as minimal impact as possible, with very little queuing or congestion on nearby routes. The contractor was able to end the closure about 12 hours earlier than allowed."

The new bridge is being built in two phases to allow traffic flow across the structure through most of the project. The first phase requires partial construction of the abutments on either side of U.S. 280.

"One of the main challenges with building this new bridge is that it's over live traffic for much of the construction, and there are residences nearby," said Leonard.

Understandably, placing 100-ft. beams across the width of the highway must be done with great precision.

"The contractor had taken the utmost care in installing the sections of girders on either side of the span. Through much planning and preparation, the setting of the 100-foot beam in the middle went as planned, with very little difficulty lining it up with the sections already in place."

Workers used a Demag AC 220-5 crane with 154,800-lb. counterweight and 82.3-ft. boom to set the outer sections. Also used was a Liebherr LTM 1400-7.1 crane with 220, 500-lb. counterweight and 118-ft. boom to set the center section.

Jon Paepcke/ALDOT photo

According to Leonard, setting the initial girders for the new bridge is a milestone.

"Setting the girders is the first major step to complete construction of the Pump House Road Bridge and demolition of the existing structure that will allow for the ultimate widening of U.S. 280 under the bridge."

Leonard added that, overall, motorists have adjusted to the ongoing work.

"ALDOT has received very few complaints concerning disruptions to traffic, since most of the lane closures have been during off-peak hours. The main questions from the traveling public concern the overall schedule and timeline of the project."

With crews working overnight, however, there have reportedly been objections to the constant pounding from jackhammers when homeowners are trying to sleep. ALDOT has been coordinating with APAC-Alabama to minimize the impact of after-hours construction.

Leonard said the main concern on the project is dealing with unexpected utility conflicts.

The large amount of traffic on the highway also is an issue for crews. Fortunately, most of the widening to the outside of U.S. 280 between Lakeshore Parkway and I-459 has been completed.

Currently, workers are continuing excavation, grading, drainage and paving work to the outside. Key tasks remaining include widening to the inside, bridge construction, concrete repair and paving throughout the project limits.

"Once we finish construction on the first half of the Pump House Road Bridge in early 2026, we will begin the process of demolishing the old bridge," said Leonard. "After that demo is complete, the contractor will begin installing the final two of five girders, which will offer an additional middle turn lane and a sidewalk."

Jon Paepcke/ALDOT photo

In addition to paving and excavation equipment, crews are using asphalt, concrete, aggregate, pipe and steel to complete the project, which has called for approximately 20,000 cu. yds. of unclassified excavation and 24,000 cu. yds. of borrow.

Although a great deal of construction remains, Leonard said it's rewarding to work on a project that will alleviate stress for countless 280 motorists.

"It means reduced congestion and delay, as well as improved traffic flow. By boosting the capacity of the heavily travelled U.S. 280 corridor from three lanes to four in both directions, we are proud knowing that our planning and the work of our contractors will help reduce the time commuters sit in traffic, while increasing the time they can spend with their families."

Construction should be completed by spring 2027. CEG