http://www.decaturdaily.com/decaturdaily/news/050416/road.shtml
I-22 signs going up for Birmingham-Memphis road By Jeffrey McMurray Associated Press Writer WASHINGTON � Completion of a Birmingham-to-Memphis interstate is still years away, but signs of progress will come Monday in the form of signs. Several members of Alabama's congressional delegation are expected to attend a ceremony in Jasper unveiling signs that say "Future I-22." During the last several years, Congress has secured more than $300 million for the project, also known as Corridor X. "This has a tremendously positive impact on all the communities on that corridor," said Sen. Jeff Sessions, R-Mobile. "When they're dealing with prospective businesses, they can say they're on an interstate � or soon will be." Under current plans, the stretch from Graysville to the Mississippi border should open in December 2006, with the rest to follow by 2012. The highway runs 94 miles and has cost $1 billion to date. "This has been the most difficult highway to build in the state," Ray Bass, chief engineer for the state Department of Transportation, told The Birmingham News. "We don't have an interstate section in Alabama that is more rugged than what we have here." Republican Sen. Richard Shelby, Republican Rep. Robert Aderholt and Democratic Rep. Bud Cramer have landed much of the funding for the project from their perch on the Appropriations Committee. "Putting up these signs truly puts Northwest Alabama on the map," Aderholt said. The project, which roughly parallels U.S. 78, provides an interstate through one of the largest segments of Appalachia that doesn't already have one. When the idea of Corridor X was authorized in 1978, the estimated cost for the 100-mile project was $100 million, but new environmental regulations and higher concrete prices now have inflated its price tag tenfold. _______________________________________________ RTF mailing list [email protected] http://rolltidefan.net/mailman/listinfo/rtf_rolltidefan.net
