Decision on Southside bridge changes placed on hold

The Alabama Department of Transportation said Thursday that a final decision on proposed changes to the southside bridge over the coosa river is on hold after changes in timing on traffic lights in Southside has helped with congestion on busy Alabama Highway 77.

ALDOT officials speaking at Thursday’s Gadsden/Etowah Metropolitan Planning Organization meeting said the changes in timing have shortened the commute from Pilgrim’s Rest Road in Southside to U.S. Highway 411 in Rainbow City by about two minutes.

The department increased the “green signal timing” on Alabama Highway 77. Officials said that has decreased the queueing on the road, which shifts from two lanes to one lane near the bridge and causes a bottleneck, especially in the mornings with school and work traffic.

Officials say a decision on restriping the bridge to allow for two-lane traffic will not be made at least until summer, when a repaving project near the bridge is completed.

ALDOT held a public meeting Nov. 18 on whether two-lane traffic on the northbound bridge would help congestion, and a number of residents who attended expressed opposition to the proposed change.