Bus Rapid Transit Line Coming To Birmingham
A rendering of the Birmingham Xpress bus rapid transit station planned for Five Points West
A new, faster bus line is on its way to the city of Birmingham.
The Birmingham Xpress will run roughly 10 miles from Five Points West, through downtown Birmingham, to Woodlawn, connecting 25 city neighborhoods.
“This is modern transportation at its best,” said Charlotte Shaw at a groundbreaking Friday. She oversaw the project for the city. “This is like rail on wheels.”
The $40 million project is supported mostly by federal transit grants and city funds. Officials say the system should improve travel times and lower costs to make it easier for residents to move across a major corridor in the city. Much of the route follows U.S. Highway 11. The system consists of two transit centers and 16 stops in between. Buses will run at 15-minute intervals during peak periods.
“This is a game-changer,” Birmingham-Jefferson County Transit Authority Executive Director Frank Martin said. “It’s the beginning of what I think over time will be a great public transit system for the area.”
Martin said officials are studying whether bus rapid transit is feasible for other routes.
Construction is scheduled to start in January and be complete by June 2022. Birmingham will host the World Games in July 2022.
Mass trial shines a light on rape culture in France
A harrowing and unprecedented trial in France is exposing how pornography, chatrooms and men’s disdain for or hazy understanding of consent is fueling rape culture.
What’s your favorite thing about fall?
With cooler mornings and shorter days, if feels like fall is finally here. So what’s your favorite thing about fall? We put that question to people at our recent News and Brews community pop-up in Cullman.
Teammates LeBron and Bronny James make history as the NBA’s first father-son duo
The Jameses, who both play for the L.A. Lakers, shared the court for several minutes on the NBA's opening night. They join a very small club of father-son teammates in American professional sports.
After John le Carré’s death, his son had the ‘daunting’ task to revive George Smiley
Nick Harkaway grew up hearing his dad read drafts of his George Smiley novels. He picks up le Carré's beloved spymaster character in the new novel, Karla's Choice.
When Steamboat goes WHOOSH, scientists look for answers
What triggers geysers to go off is still not well understood. A new paper shows that one small earthquake likely triggered an eruption of the world's tallest active geyser, Steamboat.
Trump’s ex-chief of staff warns his former boss would rule like a ‘fascist’
John Kelly is one of several Trump-era White House officials to publicly criticize their former boss, arguing that Trump is not fit to hold office again.
