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.
Epstein files fallout takes down elite figures in Europe, while U.S. reckoning is muted
Unlike in Europe, officials in the U.S. with ties to Epstein have largely held their positions of power.
Four people on NASA’S Crew-12 arrive at the International Space Station
The crew will spend the next eight months conducting experiments to prepare for human exploration beyond Earth's orbit.
American speedskater Jordan Stolz wins second Olympic gold with 500-meter race victory
With the win, Stolz joins Eric Heiden as the only skaters to take gold in both the 500 and 1,000 at the same Olympics.
US military reports a series of airstrikes against Islamic State targets in Syria
The U.S. military says the strikes were carried out in retaliation of the December ambush that killed two U.S. soldiers and one American civilian interpreter.
5 European nations say Alexei Navalny was poisoned and blame the Kremlin
In a joint statement, the foreign ministries of the U.K., France, Germany, Sweden and the Netherlands say Navalny was poisoned by Russia with a lethal toxin derived from the skin of poison dart frogs.
It’s a dangerous complication of pregnancy — but a new drug holds promise
Researchers celebrate early results of a drug that may become the first treatment for a serious complication of pregnancy called preeclampsia. It's got the potential to save many lives.
