Drivers heading north on I-65 in Morgan County are being detoured off the interstate. The Alabama Department of Transportation closed portions of I-65 north around 10 o'clock on Monday.
"It's just going to be more time consuming. It's not too fun" said Chassidy Fromhold after she learned about the detour on her way to work as a Hospice Nurse. "I was going to see a patient in the Athens area so now I'm going to have to reroute and go all the way back thru Decatur which is going to be a lot of time and mileage away from my patients" said Fromhold.
For the next two weeks, drivers like Fromhold will have to detour around I-65 north between Hartselle and Priceville as ALDOT crews repair a section of road that was first damaged by a sinkhole 2 years ago. The hole was repaired but gave way again following recent heavy rains.
Oversized loads will detour at Exit 310 to Highway 157. Commercial trucks will get off at Exit 318 to Highway 31. All other north-bound traffic will detour at exits 325 or 328. That means more traffic and 18 wheelers ONTO Highway 31.
Lt. Justin Barley with the Hartselle Police Department says DOT has synchronized the red lights on Highways 31 to allow them to stay green longer and keep the traffic flowing down Highway 31 to Highway 67. Plus drivers getting off at Exit 328 will be detoured to Highway 36 which will lighten the load on 31. "We encourage local residents to avoid 31 as much as they can" said Lt. Barley. "And use back roads and ways like that to get into the places that they need to go." The detour is expected to last two weeks.
