I-59 northbound in DeKalb County closing; traffic shifting near Georgia line

HAMMONDVILLE — Part of I-59 northbound in DeKalb County near the Georgia state line is temporarily closed for a $41 million roadway reconstruction project, the Alabama Department of Transportation announced.

Northbound traffic will transition to one lane of the southbound roadway via a crossover about five miles north of Hammondville, according to a news release. For 4.5 miles, concrete barriers will separate single lanes of northbound and southbound traffic. Traffic will return to the northbound roadway at the state line.

The closure includes the northbound on- and off-ramps at Exit 239 at Sulphur Springs. Message boards will notify motorists of the northbound ramp closures; the southbound ramps will remain open.

Wiregrass Construction, the contractor, will reconstruct a few miles of roadway south of the work area in a later phase of the project. In all, the two-phase project will demolish and replace eight miles of I-59 northbound.

The project is scheduled for completion in late 2026.

In late 2020, ALDOT began reconstructing parts of I-59 in DeKalb County and northern Etowah County due to age and deterioration of the original concrete roadway. This is the fourth project started in four years. The projects cost a total of about $150 million.

In preparation for reconstruction of the northbound roadway, Wiregrass made repairs and improvements to the southbound roadway, including rehabilitating many of the underlying concrete slabs.

Northbound drivers may encounter another traffic shift between Fort Payne and Hammondville.

Contractor A.G. Peltz Group opened the northern part of a $40.8 million, eight-mile project to traffic in July and closed the southern section for replacement in August.

For real-time traffic and road condition information, visit ALGOtraffic.com or download the ALGO Traffic app.