Railroad Crossing Elimination Project on Shelby County Road 52

The City of Pelham has been awarded $41,766,038 US Department of Transportation funding to permanently close two CSX railroad crossings on County Road 52 (CR-52) at Lee Street. CR-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. 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 pose 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 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.

Project Cost

The estimated cost of the Project is $52,410,313. The City of Pelham, the City of Helena, Shelby County, and CSX are committed funding partners. The FRA grant covers 80% of the project costs, and the partners will fund the remaining 20%.

Funding Breakdown

$41,766,038 - Federal grant
$10,644,275 - Local match

Supporting Documents

As the sole recipient of the grant funding, the City of Pelham will administer funding and act as the overall project manager for the duration of the Project. The City will procure professional services, including planning, geotechnical, engineering, environmental, permitting, inspections, and grant administration services as needed.

Project Timeline

Phase I - 2023-2026

Pre-design work such as planning, geotechnical, engineering, environmental, utility relocation, and property acquisition
Design work
Bid & Award

Phase II - 2026-2028

Construction*

*A more detailed construction schedule will be available as the project timeline advances.