A proposed privately-fund toll road connecting U.S. 280 in Sylacauga to I-65 in Calera will open miles of new highway, giving travelers and businesses much needed access for east-to-west traffic in both counties, according to the company behind the project.
“Imagine faster trips west and south while avoiding U.S. Highway 280 traffic to Birmingham,” writes Lee Perryman for the Sylacauga News “A 36-minute drive from Sylacauga to Interstate 65. New residential and industrial development and increasing property values.”
If approved, the Coosa River Express will be a privately-funded toll bridge developed, owned and operated by Tim James, Inc., a family-run business. James, the son of legendary Alabama governor Fob James, is an experienced developer having built the Foley Beach Express in the 1990s. He is joined in the project by his son and son-in-laws.
His latest project, the Coosa River Express, according to James, will “support driving growth in Shelby and Talladega counties connecting communities, increasing access, reducing commute times and enhancing safety for thousands of drivers each day.”
“The Coosa River Express, if built, is a transportation corridor that will modify travel patterns for generations, positively impacting South Shelby and West Talladega County,” James said in an interview with APR. “It will be the catalyst for economic growth in these areas; in fact, this road project begins at the Shelby County Mega Site along I-65, and goes east through the only qualified opportunity zone in Shelby County.”
No federal or state funds are used to construct the bridge; in fact, Shelby and Talladega Counties can expect to receive miles of new highway and miles of improvements to existing roads that will be paid for by James’ company.
Of the approximate 33 total miles, 27 miles of new and improved roadways constructed will be given to Shelby and Talladega Counties after the project’s completion. The toll bridge over the Coosa River at approximately 1,600 feet in length, which will consist of two 12-foot-wide lanes and 8-foot-wide shoulders, will remain the property of the privately held company.
Unlike taxpayer-funded roads, the Coosa River Express is a for-profit venture. “We take on a tremendous workload and risk to bring a project like this to fruition and hopefully make money from our efforts,” said James.
The project is estimated to cost around $40 million with two-thirds going to improve county roads.
The corridor creates a triangle starting at the Mega site in Shelby County, then tracks east to Pursell Farms, where it goes south to the proposed Alfa Farm Center a few miles into Chilton County.
The Westervelt Calera Megasite is a 1,540-acre property in the southern part of Shelby County, off Interstate 65, in one of Alabama’s fastest-growing and most affluent counties, according to facts provided the site developers. Its location puts it within the automotive triangle created by Hyundai to the south, Honda to the northeast, and Mercedes-Benz to the northwest.
The Coosa River Express will also impact the opportunity zone created in Shelby County. An Opportunity Zone is a new alternative economic development program established by Congress in the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act of 2017 to foster private-sector investments in low-income rural and urban areas.
“One important thing that seems to be overlooked in the press is that our project passes through an area of Shelby County where lower-income families live; well over 50 percent of the children in the area qualify for free or reduced lunch,” said James.
The Alabama Farm Center at Alfa Centennial Park calls for a four-building complex on a 500-acres on the east side of Interstate 65 at Exit 212 between Alabama 145 and County Road 43. “The Alabama Farm Center will include a 5,000-seat air-conditioned arena, 150,000 square foot exhibition building, 400-stall horse barn, 400 recreational vehicle hookups and a variety of other barns and arenas,” according to a report by Alabama News Center.
The expressway will make it faster and cheaper to transport goods and livestock to the new farmer’s market.
“Besides the fact that this project will set the travel patterns south of Birmingham for generations, it also creates a badly needed economic shot in the arm to south Shelby and north Chilton Counties,” James noted.
Talladega and Shelby counties in partnership owned and operated a ferry across the Coosa River from mid-1960 until it was abandoned in 1977.
“For decades, leaders have agreed that raising a bridge at the former ferry location and the more direct southern access to Interstate 65 would significantly improve regional traffic flow, help recreational and commercial drivers avoid Birmingham area bottlenecks, and stimulate economic development in the two counties,” writes Perryman.
“My family and I believe the Coosa River Express is part of the dynamic new growth that is sweeping our state,” said James. “There’s one thing I’m sure of, growth occurs because of traffic and is absent where none exist.”
Tim James, Inc. received its first of two required licenses to build the Coosa River Express from the Talladega County Commission on January 13, 2020. The Shelby County Commission is expected to vote on its license in the future.
