Railroad Crossing Elimination Project on Shelby County Road 52

County Road 52 is an essential link between the City of Pelham and the City of Helena and connects both cities to Interstate 65, the state's major north-to-south arterial, ultimately connecting to the cities of Birmingham, Huntsville, Montgomery, and Mobile. County Road 52 (CR-52) is a vital east-to-west collector roadway across the southern Birmingham metropolitan area and is currently carrying a higher volume of traffic than any other east-to-west connector in the area except Interstate 459. There are currently two at-grade railroad crossings that frequently restrict access across CR-52 and obstruct emergency vehicles responding to calls for help. The community strongly favors the construction of the bridge to address the long-standing and worsening problem of blocked grade crossings that disrupt mobility and poses risks to life safety. When the crossings are blocked, emergency responders east of the tracks cannot respond to calls west of the tracks. During these times, an emergency response must be requested from neighboring cities, which lengthens response times. 

Project at a Glance

The City of Pelham is seeking federal funding to permanently close two CSX railroad crossings on CR-52 at Lee Street. The Railroad Crossing Elimination Project on Shelby County Road 52 (the Project) proposes the realignment of CR-52 West with the existing CR-52 East alignment and the construction of a bridge over the two crossings. As part of the proposed realignment, the intersection of CR-52 and US Highway 31 will be reconfigured and additional improvements will be implemented along Highway 31. The project will also widen and reconstruct CR-52 East of US Highway 31 to increase capacity and update the roadway to current design standards.

Shelby County 52 Railroad Crossing Elimination Project

Supporting Documents

Benefits Cost Analysis

Environmental Analysis

Traffic Analysis

Project Partners and Supporters

Federal and State Support

Local and County Support

Public Safety Support

Medical Community Support

Educational Institution Support

Private Entity Support