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Interstate 59 in Alabama

This article is about the section of Interstate 59 in Alabama. For the entire route, see Interstate 59.
Interstate 59 marker
Interstate 59
Map
I-59 highlighted in red
Route information
Maintained by ALDOT
Length241.36 mi[1] (388.43 km)
ExistedAugust 14, 1957[2]–present
HistoryCompleted June 2, 1980[3]
NHSEntire route
Major junctions
South end I-20 / I-59 at the Mississippi state line west of Cuba
Major intersections
North end I-59 at the Georgia state line northeast of Hammondville
Location
CountryUnited States
StateAlabama
CountiesSumter, Greene, Tuscaloosa, Jefferson, St. Clair, Etowah, DeKalb
Highway system
  • Alabama State Highway System
← SR 58→ SR 59

Interstate 59 (I-59) is a part of the Interstate Highway System that runs 445.23 miles (716.53 km) from Slidell, Louisiana, to just outside of Wildwood, Georgia. In the U.S. state of Alabama, I-59 travels 241.36 miles (388.43 km) from the Mississippi state line near Cuba to the Georgia state line northeast of Hammondville. It serves as the main Interstate Highway connecting the cities of Tuscaloosa, Birmingham, and Gadsden. For more than half of its length in the state, I-59 runs concurrently with I-20. Past the routes' split in eastern Birmingham on their way to Georgia, I-20 takes a shorter path through Birmingham's eastern suburbs and the southern foothills of the Appalachian Mountains, while I-59 follows a longer route through the city's northern suburbs and over the mountains on its way to Gadsden.

Of the four states which I-59 covers, the segment in Alabama is the longest and accounts for more than half of its entire length overall.[4][5] The Interstate parallels the older U.S. Route 11 (US 11) corridor for its full extent within the state. I-59 was first signed into the Interstate Highway System in 1957, and construction began in 1960. The portions of the highway were completed slowly, with the very last segment being opened in 1980. Since then, many projects have been undertaken on I-59 to relieve congestion within the metropolitan areas it passes. The Interstate has three auxiliary routes: I-359 in Tuscaloosa, I-459 within the Birmingham metropolitan area, and I-759 in Gadsden.

  1. ^ "Route Log and Finder List - Interstate System: Table 1". FHWA. Retrieved 2007-10-05.
  2. ^ Public Roads Administration (August 14, 1957). Official Route Numbering for the National System of Interstate and Defense Highways as Adopted by the American Association of State Highway Officials (Map). Washington, DC: Public Roads Administration. Archived from the original on July 19, 2017. Retrieved June 14, 2018 – via Wikimedia Commons.
  3. ^ Ingram, Bill (June 3, 1980). "At last: Ribbon-cutting opens I-59 link". Birmingham Post-Herald. Birmingham. p. C4. Retrieved September 25, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
  4. ^ "Table 1 - Main Routes - FHWA Route Log and Finder List - Interstate Highway System - National Highway System - Planning - FHWA". www.fhwa.dot.gov. Retrieved 2024-09-20.
  5. ^ Alabama Department of Transportation. "2021 Senate Plan" (PDF). ww.dot.state.al.us. Retrieved September 25, 2024.

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