Alabama State Route 133

State Route 133
Route information
Maintained by ALDOT
Length:	16.976 mi[1] (27.320 km)
Major junctions
South end:	SR-20 / SR-157
North end:	SR-20
Location
Counties:	Colbert, Lauderdale
Highway system
Alabama State Routes Interstate US State ← SR-132 SR-134 →

State Route 133 or SR-133 is a mostly multi-lane highway and is a primary artery through Muscle Shoals and Florence in northwest Alabama. The route begins at SR-20 (Alternate US-72) just south of Muscle Shoals. It runs north along Wilson Dam Road, becoming a six-lane highway at Avalon Avenue. It crosses the Tennessee River and enters Florence on the new Patton Island Bridge. From there, it narrows to four lanes and runs east along Veterans Drive to Cox Creek Parkway. It follows Cox Creek Parkway as it forms a northern loop around the city of Florence, though there is extensive retail development along most of the route. SR-133 and Cox Creek Parkway end northwest of Florence, again at the intersection of SR-20 (known locally as Savannah Highway).

History

SR-133 was likely formed around 1927 with the completion of Wilson Dam on the Tennessee River and the opening of it to automobile traffic. At this time, the route would have started at an old alignment of SR-20 just a few hundred yards north of its current alignment. It followed Wilson Dam Road north through Muscle Shoals to the TVA Reservation. Here it intersected Reservation Road, running east to the Dam. Crossing the Dam it would have entered Florence and followed Wilson Dam Road, just east of the current Cox Creek Parkway alignment. It ended at Huntsville Road, which at the time carried U.S. Highway 72.

In the mid-1950s, U.S. 72 in Florence shifted to a new alignment on Florence Boulevard, about one-half of a mile north of Huntsville Road. It is unclear, but SR-133 may have taken Middle Road to between Huntsville Road and Florence Blvd. to reach U.S. 72. Also around this time, SR-20 south of Muscle Shoals shifted southward to a new routing, extending the route south about 300 yards.

Big changes occurred in the early 1970s with the construction of Cox Creek Parkway, a northern loop for the city of Florence. The new road placed SR-133 on a four-lane highway for the first time. From Wilson Dam, Cox Creek Parkway replaced Wilson Dam Road to carry SR-133 to Florence Blvd. From there, the route was extended some seven miles along the entirety of Cox Creek Parkway.

In 2002 the Singing River Bridge (Patton Island Bridge) opened, forming a new Tennessee River crossing one mile west of Wilson Dam. As part of a long-term "Patton Island Corridor", SR-133 was shifted to this new six-lane bridge. The move necessitated construction of an overpass on Wilson Dam Road on the TVA Reservation. SR-133's routing on Reservation Road and Wilson Dam itself was removed. After crossing the new bridge into Florence, the route turned east on Veterans Drive to rejoin Cox Creek Parkway just north of Wilson Dam.

Plans

As part of the on-going Patton Island Corridor development, changes will be made to SR-133.

In Colbert County, Wilson Dam Road continues to be upgraded to a multi-lane highway. As of late 2008, the road is six lanes from the Tennessee River south through Muscle Shoals to Avalon Avenue. Plans call for the highway to eventually be four-laned from Avalon Avenue south to SR-20; however, those plans are on hold after landowners' disputed the State of Alabama's offers to purchase their land along the proposed ROW.

In Lauderdale County the final extension of the project, from Huntsville Road to Helton Drive, opened on October 16, 2008. This included the opening of an overpass and interchange at the intersection with Florence Blvd. (U.S. 43/U.S. 72). The road is six lanes from the Patton Island Bridge north to the connection with Helton Drive and its intersection with Hermitage Drive. The routing of SR-133 on this new portion is unclear, however; signage still points SR-133 to Veterans Drive. It is possible that SR-133 will eventually be routed on this new roadway to Helton Drive, then follow Helton Drive to Cox Creek Parkway.

Major intersections

County	Location	mi[1]	km	Destinations	Notes
Colbert		0.000	0.000	US-72 Alt. / SR-20 / SR-157 south / CR-57 south – Moulton, Decatur, Tuscumbia	south end of SR-157 overlap
	Muscle Shoals	4.232	6.811	SR-184 (Second Street)
Lauderdale	Florence	7.568	12.180	SR-157 north (Helton Drive)	north end of SR-157 overlap
		10.320	16.608	US-43 / US-72 / SR-13 (Florence Boulevard / SR-2) – Florence, Sheffield, Athens, Lawrenceburg, Joe Wheeler State Park
		13.126	21.124	SR-17 south / SR-157 south / CR-199 north (Helton Drive)	south end of SR-17 / SR-157 overlap
		13.464	21.668	SR-17 north (Chisholm Road) – Florence, Waynesboro	north end of SR-17 overlap
		14.256	22.943	SR-157 north (Cloverdale Road) – Cloverdale	north end of SR-157 overlap
		16.976	27.320	SR-20 – Florence, Savannah
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi

Historic Routes

Almost all old portions of SR-133 are still in existence. Reservation Road in Colbert County runs east from the intersection with the current route to Wilson Dam. The roadway across Wilson Dam is still open, albeit all commercial truck traffic is prohibited. In Lauderdale County, Wilson Dam Road still exists from Veterans Park Drive to Huntsville Road.

References