Road work to close portions of 15th Street, McFarland Boulevard this week

Road work planned to start this week stands to affect motorists along two of Tuscaloosa’s busiest thoroughfares.

The work begins Wednesday with the 2.01-mile repaving project for 15th Street.

It follows Friday with the closing of McFarland Boulevard under the Interstate 20/59 bridge in one of the final phases of the ongoing work to widen the interstate through Tuscaloosa.

Also known as Alabama Highway 215, the Alabama Department of Transportation awarded a $2.66 million contract to Birmingham-based Midsouth Paving Inc. to resurface 15th Street between Greensboro Avenue and Dr. Edward Hillard Drive.

John D. McWilliams, spokesman for ALDOT’s West Central Region, said the 15th Street work will take place during nighttime hours starting Wednesday.

“The contractor is only allowed to close lanes between 8 p.m. and 5 a.m. to reduce the impact on traffic,” McWilliams said.

Work to resurface 15th Street, which is part ongoing negotiations between ALDOT and Tuscaloosa City Hall to be taken over by the city for economic development purposes, is expected to last until late 2021, weather permitting.

Shortly after the 15th Street repaving work begins, construction will again close McFarland Boulevard under I-20/59 to allow contractors to reconfigure the travel lanes under the new crimson-arched bridge.

More:No golden arches here: Crews complete work in Tuscaloosa to paint I-20/59 arches crimson

McWilliams said work crews will be constructing a single-point urban interchange, or SPUI, to improve traffic flow on McFarland Boulevard beneath the Exit 73 bridge.

McFarland Boulevard, directly under the interstate, will close in both directions from 11 p.m. Friday through 5 a.m. Aug. 9.

The crimson arches now hold the weight of the bridge over McFarland Boulevard, allowing space for the SPUI to be constructed.

McWilliams said the SPUI will improve travel time while also enhancing safety, as it will permit motorists to simultaneously turn left without crossing the path of opposing left-turning motorists while moving more vehicles through the intersection and reducing potential conflict points.

Once the SPUI is complete, the contractor will have future, intermittent lane closures for work on the median islands, sidewalk, signage and other various items, McWilliams said.

Motorists are being told to expect delays and are encouraged to use Skyland Boulevard, Interstate 359 or other alternate routes.

This work is part of the $83.4 million project to add lanes and replace bridges on I-20/59. It also included the installation of the crimson-colored arches over McFarland Boulevard that has been ongoing this year.

Work began in 2018 and was originally slated to end December 2020, but weather delays, the global coronavirus pandemic and problems associated with the first arch installation pushed the expected completion date back to late summer 2021.

When finished, the project will widen the northbound and southbound sides of I-20/59 to three lanes from about a mile north of Exit 76 to just south of the McFarland Boulevard bridge.

For more information on either of these projects, visit www.dot.state.al.us.

Reach Jason Morton at jason.morton@tuscaloosanews.com.