Cecil Ashburn Drive construction right on track, paving starting

HUNTSVILLE, AL (WAFF) - The Cecil Ashburn Drive construction project has changed the way people get to and from work. It also impacted commutes to school, church and shopping.

The good news is that everything is on schedule and drone footage shared with the WAFF 48 News provides a bird's eye view of the progress.

The video was shot by amateur UAV pilot Jeffrey Cosby. The drone goes over the mountain, showing how the 3.4 mile stretch is being widened to four lanes.

We spoke with Big Cove Resident Brad Garland about how the road closure has impacted his commute, along with thousands of others.

"Cecil Ashburn closing has meant more traffic on the other routes, mainly Governors Drive. For my commute in the morning and evenings, it adds more time and if there's any sort of fender bender or slow down or a lane closure, anything, it can turn into an hour commute or more," he said. "You're having to take Cecil Ashburn closure into consideration."

Garland says many are following along with how the project is advancing.

“We’ve been seeing the progress in the videos on Facebook and the GrowCove page and it’s been good to see. We’re encouraged by seeing significant progress being made over time. It’s good to hear that the blasting work wasn’t impacted by the two weeks of solid rain that we had and it’s just seeing more development as that occurs,” he stated.

Crews are totally done with clearing operations and anticipate installing the first layer of asphalt by the end of this month. They're currently on schedule with no delays.

The contractor is currently on schedule to reopen Cecil Ashburn Drive to two-way traffic by October 2019.

The Cecil Ashburn project is expected to be fully complete by May 2020.

“We’re ready to go back to the Jones Valley businesses again and use Cecil Ashburn again as a way to get to South Huntsville,” Garland added.

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