New apartment complexes aren't the only things being built in Auburn these days. As students return for the fall semester, construction on the new, five-lane Moore's Mill Bridge continues in South Auburn.
Construction on the bridge began in late April when construction crews began work on the new foundations and preparing the ground to build abutments to hold the bridge. Crews are currently building the abutments.
Moore's Mill Road crosses Interstate 85 in South Auburn and connects the city's core to its southern neighborhoods including Ogletree and Grove Hill. Thousands live across the aging bridge, which is limited currently to two lanes.
The bridge replacement is intended to alleviate bumper-to-bumper traffic for all of the residents who live in those neighborhoods.
The Alabama Department of Transportation will continue to limit left-turn access near the construction site along both East University Drive and Moore's Mill Road, according to Director of Public Works Jeff Ramsey. The city advises commuters to use alternative routes through the area when they're available.
"We're going to look for opportunities where we can add back the left-turn lanes," Ramsey said. "We'll just have to wait and see."
The total project will cost around $12 million. The 80 percent of the cost of the project will be covered by the state through a grant, and the remaining 20 percent, or around $2.5 million, will covered through the city's budget. Ramsey said the project still has about a year until completion.
"There's still quite a bit of work to be done," Ramsey said. "They've got to get the approaches to the bridge, which means getting all the dirt in there, getting the stone in and then paving on each side. You've got to build the whole bridge on the Montgomery side, which is going to take a while. My guess is six months before that bridge is completed."
The five-lane bridge will be built in two phases: Phase one will include building a new, two-lane bridge to the west of the existing bridge. Once the new two-lane bridge is completed, the existing bridge will be demolished and another three-lane bridge will be built in its place for a total of five lanes.
Ward 5 Councilwoman Lynda Tremaine, whose ward is affected by the construction, said she supports the project because the existing two-lane bridge is just too small to serve as a main artery for travel into the city.
"I certainly do plan my trips to Publix according to what time a day of his," Tremaine said. "It's going to be a long process obviously, but I have not heard complaints. I think people are just going with it, knowing that it's going to be better once it's complete. I am trusting they think it's necessary."
However, Tremaine wants to the city to focus more heavily on better-planned development to alleviate the need to drive.
"We're just encouraging more cars, the way we're doing things," Tremaine said. "But I've seen that line of traffic coming in. There are hundreds and hundreds and thousands out that way over the bridge. You know, I can see that it's grown so much out there that this two-lane bridge isn't enough."
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