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U.S. 80 (Corridor 6)
The sixth high priority corridor identified in ISTEA/NHS/TEA-21 legislation is U.S. 80 from Meridian, Mississippi, east to Savannah, Georgia. This corridor includes the following components:
- U.S. 80 from Meridian to Montgomery via Demopolis and Selma
- Interstate 85 from Montgomery to Auburn-Opelika
- U.S. 280 from Auburn-Opelika to Columbus (alternative route is U.S. 80)
- U.S. 80 from Columbus to Macon
- Interstate 16 from Macon to Savannah
The U.S. 80 Corridor from Meridian to Savannah has been proposed for several enhancements in Georgia and Alabama.
U.S. 80 in Alabama
The U.S. 80 Corridor in Alabama is generally two to four lane, with freeway segments along Interstate 85. It is two lane from Cuba east to Demopolis, and four lanes from there east to Montgomery via Selma with some notable exceptions. Interstate 85 begins in Montgomery, and the freeway parallels U.S. 80 from there to east of Tuskegee. Although U.S. 80 continues as a two-lane highway to the Phenix City-Columbus metro area, U.S. 280-431 provides a divided highway alternative via Auburn-Opelika.
Interstate 85 Extension Proposal
As part of the 2001 Transportation Appropriations Bill (National Corridor Planning and Development Program), $3,000,000 was allocated toward the feasibility of extending Interstate 85 from its current terminus in Montgomery west to Interstate 20-59 near Cuba. This would involve upgrading new construction as well as upgrades to existing U.S. 80 in western Alabama. The results of this study will provide some insight as to whether an Interstate highway will be constructed along this portion of the U.S. 80 corridor.
In the meantime, upgrades to U.S. 80 between Cuba and Montgomery are already planned despite the Interstate 85 Extension Proposal. These upgrades will increase the four-lane mileage of U.S. 80. The 1999 Alabama DOT project list includes several bypasses, including Demopolis and Uniontown. Construction of the Demopolis bypass is currently scheduled to begin in 2006, but the full bypass won't be complete until at least 2012. A bypass of Uniontown is scheduled earlier, with construction beginning in 2003 and completion expected around 2006. Although there is some opposition to both bypasses, plans continue for these new bypass projects. Other upgrades along the route will close the gap between Interstate 20-59 and the western end of the four-lane section just east of the Tennessee-Tombigbee Waterway, starting with construction of a parallel bridge span over the Tennessee-Tombigbee in late 2002 and 2003. Other construction of four-lane highway will begin during the early to mid-2000s. Current plans do not call for full freeway status for U.S. 80, but that feeling may change if traffic counts increase beyond the planned capacity of the highway.
The U.S. 80 corridor ends on the Alabama side of the Alabama-Mississippi State Line, at Exit 1 on Interstate 20/59 near Cuba, Alabama, just east of Meridian, Mississippi. Adam Froehlig says that the westernmost two miles between Interstate 20/59 and U.S. 11 are already four-lane divided. This section of highway is also unique in that it is signed as "To U.S. 80" eastbound or "To Interstate 20/59" westbound, since U.S. 80 turns and follows the two-lane U.S. 11 into Mississippi. This unnumbered four-lane section is "secret" Alabama State Route 8.
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Tuskegee to Phenix City/Columbus
U.S. 280-431 is the fastest route from Columbus to Interstate 85, and this route can be faster than two-lane U.S. 80, although U.S. 80 has shorter mileage. So far there are no plans for this route to be upgraded to freeway standards, although signage at the western end of the U.S. 80 freeway bypass in Phenix City indicate a "temporary" western end. This implies that the freeway is planned for further extension.
U.S. 80 in Georgia
The Fall Line Freeway
In Georgia, the U.S. 80 High Priority Corridor is part of a proposal called the "Fall Line Freeway." Although referred to as a freeway, it will be constructed to multi-lane divided standards initially. Georgia DOT refers to this corridor as Project FLF-540, indicating both the name of the highway and the future state route number, Georgia 540. Corridor 6 follows the Fall Line from Columbus to Macon, but Corridor 6 continues along Interstate 16 and U.S. 80 to Savannah, while the Fall Line Freeway continues northeast to Augusta. The Fall Line Freeway is estimated to cost $287 million, should be completed by 2009, and will provide a direct corridor from Columbus to Augusta.
According to Georgia DOT, the "Fall Line Freeway" is a part of the 1989 Governor's Road Improvement Program (GRIP) that would run from Columbus to Macon to Augusta. The goal of the GRIP is to connect 95 percent of the state's cities with a population of 2,500 or more to the Interstate system via four-lane roads and to put 75 percent of the state's population within two miles of a four-lane highway. The Fall Line Freeway will follow improved existing routes: the Fall Line Freeway follows U.S. 80 from Columbus to Geneva, then it follows Georgia 96 from Geneva to Interstate 75, goes up Interstate 75 to Macon, then follows Georgia 49, 57, 22, and 88 up to Interstate 520 on the outskirts of Augusta.
The Fall Line Freeway is referred to as a "freeway," but it is unlikely that the highway will be built to full freeway standards initially. Most of the Fall Line Freeway will be just upgrades of existing roads to four-lane, divided highway status.
Apparently the Fall Line Freeway is already the subject of some debate, since the freeway is planned to come close to the Ocmulgee National Monument (located just east of Macon near Interstate 16 and U.S. 80). This has upset some Native Americans who have a vested interest in the historic site. In addition, the routing of the Fall Line Freeway has not been finalized through Macon. However, a bridge was constructed on the south side of town in 1999 that is planned to improve traffic flow from the east side to west. It will extend from the end of the divided highway (Eisenhower Highway) to U.S. 129 over the Ocmulgee River around the Indian Mounds.
As of December 1997, some of the completed portions of the Fall Line Freeway include:
- U.S. 80 (J.R. Allen Parkway) Phenix City/Columbus bypass (Interstate standard)
- Georgia 96 between Reynolds and Fort Valley
- Georgia 49 from Fort Valley to Interstate 75
- Georgia 57 from Macon to the Bibb-Twiggs County Line (multi-lane divided )
- Georgia 88 around Sandersville
- U.S. 1 and Georgia 4 from Interstate 520 to near Wrens
As of November 2005, 79 percent (or 170 miles) of the 215-mile, $255.5 million, four-lane Fall Line Freeway corridor from Columbus to Macon to Augusta is complete or under construction. The remaining parts of that corridor are being developed, including environmental, design or right-of-way activities. Overall, the first section, from Columbus to Macon, is 100 percent under construction or open to traffic (75 percent in 1999). The second section, from Macon to Augusta, is 66 percent under construction or open to traffic (was 44 percent in 1999).
For a complete status update on the upgrading of the Fall Line Freeway, visit the official Georgia's GRIP Corridor Status web page, presented by the Georgia Department of Transportation. The section of Corridor 6 that overlaps the Fall Line Freeway in western Georgia is also part of Corridor 62, which includes all of the GRIP Corridors.
Like other high priority corridors, it is anticipated that the Fall Line Freeway will bring economic benefits to the rural regions of Georgia, as evidenced by articles related to the project, such as the Macon Telegraph article, "Driven to prosperity: Midstate counties banking on Fall Line Freeway," by Rob Peecher on June 27, 1999.
For more specific detail on the Fall Line Freeway in Georgia, please go to Steve William's page on Fall Line Freeway (Georgia 540).
Interstate 16
The remaining section of the U.S. 80 Corridor is Interstate 16 from Macon to Savannah. No major improvements are planned to this section of the corridor.
Interstate 14
Interstate 14 is the proposed designation for a new freeway corridor between Natchez, Mississippi and Augusta, Georgia. This proposed yet unfunded freeway corridor would interact with parts of the U.S. 80 High Priority Corridor 6. Starting in Natchez, Interstate 14 would follow U.S. 84 from Louisiana into Mississippi through Natchez, Brookhaven, Laurel, and Waynesboro before entering Alabama. Once in Alabama, the route will follow U.S. 84 east to Grove Hill, then angle northeast via Clarke County Route 35 toward Camden. At Camden, the freeway would turn east again via Alabama 28 and Alabama 21, connecting with Interstate 65 east of Hayneville via Lowndes County Route 26. From that point, Interstate 14 would merge with Interstate 65 north to Interstate 85 north, possibly using the planned Alabama 108/Montgomery Outer Bypass freeway. Near Tuskegee, Interstate 14 would branch off Interstate 85 and follow U.S. 80 east to Phenix City and enter Georgia at Columbus.
Between Columbus and Macon, the proposed Interstate 14 corridor would not duplicate the Fall Line Freeway (Georgia 540). Instead, the Fall Line Freeway would follow U.S. 80/Georgia 22 from Columbus east to Geneva, then it would follow Georgia 96 from Geneva east to Butler and Fort Valley before reaching Interstate 75 at Byron. At Interstate 75, the Fall Line Freeway would head north to the proposed Eisenhower Parkway Extension, then follow that route northeast, skirting downtown Macon and Ocmulgee National Monument. From there, the Fall Line Freeway would roughly follow the proposed Interstate 14 corridor northeast to Augusta via Georgia 57, Georgia 88, and U.S. 1/Georgia 4.
Following the existing U.S. 80 and bypass of Columbus, Interstate 14 would turn south on Interstate 185, then southeast on U.S. 27-280/Georgia 1. Interstate 14 would then split east along Georgia 26 at Cusseta, then continue east along Georgia 26, meeting Interstate 75 in the vicinity of Perry, where it would meet up with Georgia 96 and the Fall Line Freeway Corridor (High Priority Corridor 6). Interstate 14 would then turn northeast through Warner Robins and connect with Georgia 88 via a new route between Irwinton and Sandersville. From there, Interstate 14 would travel northeast via Georgia 88 and U.S. 1/Georgia 4 to meet Interstate 520 in Augusta. At Augusta, Interstate 14 could continue east over the Savannah River, and it would follow the new Interstate 520 freeway northeast to end at Interstate 20 in South Carolina.
Page Updated November 8, 2005.
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