By Associated Press
Birmingham AL – Alabama transportation officials will open 26 more miles of Corridor X on Nov. 14 and aim to complete Alabama's portion of the limited-access highway between Birmingham and Memphis, Tenn., by 2010.
A 20-mile stretch between Industrial Parkway in Jasper and U.S. 78 in Graysville will open, and a six-mile stretch from Graysville to Cherry Avenue in Forestdale, which has been open to local traffic, will open to all traffic, said Brian Davis, Birmingham division engineer for the state Department of Transportation.
After the openings, Alabama's uncompleted portions of the highway will be a five-mile corridor leading to Interstate 65 in Birmingham and an interchange with I-65. Work is already under way to widen I-65 in preparation for the interchange.
State Transportation Director Joe McInnes said Alabama's portion will be finished by 2010. The estimated cost for all the construction in Alabama is $1.4 billion.
Once Corridor X is connected to I-65, it will become known as Interstate 22. The highway already has signs noting that it is the "Future I-22."
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Information from: The Birmingham News