The U.S. Department of Transportation recently awarded the Magic City nearly $22 million to improve its ongoing urban trail project. Funding is part of DOT’s Rebuilding American Infrastructure with Sustainability and Equity Grant Program.
The grant will include 3.16 miles of new improvements along the trail’s two main corridors, stretching from the Fourth Avenue Business District to Legion Field on Graymont Avenue as well as 16th Street North. These improvements will feature a combination of multi-use paths, sidewalks, streetscapes and bicycle lanes.
Darrell O’Quinn is the city councilor for Birmingham’s fifth district and the chairman of the city council’s Transportation Committee. O’Quinn said he was excited to hear the federal government’s interest in the project.
“I was elated to learn that we had received the funding,” he said. “The total project cost is a little over $29 million, and that is, obviously, a major infrastructure project for any municipality. To see it happen in a portion of the city that historically hasn’t seen the same level of investment [as other areas] is great. I know the residents of the Smithfield community are extremely happy to see this type of project come to their neighborhood.”
The urban trail project will feature two main components. The first component is 2.12 miles of Complete Streets on Graymont Avenue North, 5th Avenue North and 6th Street West, which include a separated two-way cycle track, transit and street trees. It also includes 0.36 miles of Complete Streets and a Transit Corridor on 4th Avenue North, improving transit stops. The second component is 0.68 miles of shared use paths, Complete Street improvements, street trees and stormwater control measures along 16th Street North. Complete Streets are multipurpose streets that are accessible to pedestrians, bicyclists, motorists and transit riders.
According to the city’s project synopsis, the Birmingham Urban Trail connects the city’s underserved neighborhoods in Smithfield and Graymont to downtown. In addition, O’Quinn said the trail will make the city more accommodating to alternative modes of transportation.
“For the past few decades, the city has increasingly become automobile oriented… Many of the bike lanes in Birmingham are just striping off a portion of the street for bicycle use, but there’s no physical separation between motorized vehicle traffic and bicycle traffic,” he said. “This project will actually [implement] a true protected bike facility… We’ll [also] see a dedicated bus stop, as many of our bus stops in the city are no more than just a sign on the side of the street.”
The push for other forms of transportation began in 2018, when the city council approved a Complete Streets Ordinance and began adding bike lanes and sidewalk improvements to the city.
However, O’Quinn said the trail project does more than benefit bicyclists; it also improves public health. He said one way the trail boosts public health is by reducing Birmingham’s ‘heat island effect.’ A heat island is when an urban area is several degrees hotter than surrounding rural areas due to a lack of vegetation and excessive amount of paved surfaces that absorb heat. In fact, the United States Environmental Protection Agency reports heat islands can lead to several heat-related illnesses, including respiratory difficulties, heat exhaustion, heat cramps, non-fatal heat stroke and general discomfort.
O’Quinn said the trail also improves Alabamians’ well-being by promoting walking around the Magic City, which could counteract underlying health conditions.
“Part of what we’re trying to accomplish here is to improve the corridors for pedestrians,” he said. “It should be no surprise to anyone that we have epidemic proportions of obesity in the United States. Birmingham factors into that. In fact, part of the reason why UAB is one of the biggest kidney transplantation centers in the country is related to the renal effects of Type 2 Diabetes, caused by obesity."
The project’s anticipated completion date is Dec. 26, 2029. It is part of Jefferson County’s ongoing Red Rock Trail System. O’Quinn said the system is a state partnership with the Freshwater Land Trust with the goal of building a 750-mile trail network of parks, bike lanes and sidewalks throughout central Alabama. Freshwater Land Trust reports 129 miles of trails have been completed as of last month.
The city of Birmingham also applied for Choice Neighborhoods Funding in January. The U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development announced Birmingham was one of just eight cities selected for final funding consideration. O’Quinn said, in conjunction with the trail project, Birmingham’s Smithfield community could receive nearly $300 million worth of investment to revitalize the area and add close to 1,000 new residential housing units. He said the city should know their standing in the coming weeks.
