U.S. Route 431 in Alabama

U.S. Route 431
State Route 1
Route information
Maintained by ALDOT
Length:	352.958 mi[1] (568.031 km)
Existed:	1954 – present
Major junctions
South end:	US 231 / US 231 Bus. / US 431 Bus. / SR 1 / SR 210 in Dothan
	US 280 in Phenix City US 80 in Phenix City I‑85 / US 29 in Opelika I‑20 east of Oxford US 278 in Gadsden US 411 in Gadsden I‑59 in Attalla US 231 in Huntsville I‑565 / US 72 Alt. in Huntsville US 72 in Huntsville
North end:	US 231 / US 431 towards Fayetteville, TN
Location
Counties:	Houston, Henry, Barbour, Russell, Lee, Chambers, Randolph, Cleburne, Calhoun, Etowah, Marshall, Madison
Highway system
United States Numbered Highway System List Special Divided Replaced Alabama Highways Interstate US State ← US 411 I‑459 → ← SR 959 SR 2 →

U.S. Highway 431 (US-431), internally designated by the Alabama Department of Transportation as State Route 1 (SR-1), is a major north–south state highway across the eastern part of the U.S. state of Alabama. Although US-431's south end is in Dothan, SR-1 continues south for about 13 miles (21 km) along US-231 to the Florida state line.

Route description

Map of Dothan

State Route 1 is primarily the unsigned partner route assigned to U.S. Highway 431. The two routes are co-aligned from the southern terminus of US-431 at Dothan to the Tennessee state line. South of Dothan, State Route 1 is assigned to U.S. Highway 231. The two highways run north from Dothan through the Wiregrass region of southeastern Alabama through the towns of Headland and Abbeville en route to Eufaula, where it intersects U.S. Route 82. North of Eufaula, en route to Phenix City, the highway encounters some of the most sparsely populated parts of the state, only passing near the unincorporated communities of Pittsview, Glenville, and Seale in the 46 mile (74 km) drive between the two cities. In Phenix City, the highway junctions with U.S. Route 280 and U.S. Route 80. North of Phenix City, en route to Opelika, US 431 and US 280 join together for a concurrency, passing through the cities of Smiths Station and Salem on the way into Opelika. In Opelika, the two highways cross Interstate 85 and split in Opelika; US 431 continuing northeastward and US 280 northwestward. North of Opelika, the highway encounters rural terrain again, passing through the cities of LaFayette, Roanoke, and Wedowee en route to Anniston. In Oxford, just south of Anniston, the highway intersects Interstate 20, joining I-20 for an approximately three-mile concurrency, after which it goes through Anniston, northward into Gadsden, where it joins with US-278, crosses Interstate 59, and shares a brief wrong-way concurrency with US-11 in nearby Attalla, after which it continues northwestward, splitting from US-278 northwest of Attalla and later passing through Guntersville en route to Huntsville. In Huntsville, US-231 and US-431 (Governors Drive) junction again as Memorial Parkway, and State Route 1 is partnered with both U.S. Highways until they cross into Tennessee.

From its point of origin in Houston County, State Route 1 is aligned very close to the Alabama-Georgia border, coming within less than one mile (1.6 km) of the border at both Eufaula and Phenix City. At Phenix City, US-431 and unsigned State Route 1 begin a concurrency with U.S. Highway 280 and unsigned State Route 38 and turn to the northwest. At Opelika, US-431 and State Route 1 divert from US-280 and resume their northward orientation.

East of Oxford, State Route 1 and US-431 merge with westbound Interstate 20 and run concurrently with Interstate 20 from Exit 191 to Exit 188. At Oxford, State Route 1 and US-431 begin a gradual northwestward trajectory, passing through Anniston, Gadsden and Guntersville. The two routes resume their northward orientation upon merging with U.S. Highway 231 at Huntsville.

The portion through Oxford and Anniston is currently routed via Veterans Memorial Parkway as of December 21, 2015. Prior to this date, this portion was routed via Quintard Avenue, which constitutes the major north-south business and local route through these cities and is a congested route with many traffic signals and no room for widening. ^[2]

Four-lane routing

One of the criticisms of US-431 in its entirety from Kentucky to Alabama was that it was mainly a two-lane road. ALDOT has prioritized four-laning the route in Alabama as a viable north–south road corridor in the eastern part of the state.

The old alignment of US 431 between Pittsview and the Barbour County line

Of particular concern was the segment from Seale south to the Barbour County line, where rolling hills along the original alignment limit the visibility of oncoming traffic, contributing to poor decisions by motorists to pass, resulting in numerous head-on collisions. In this segment alone, 31 people were killed in crashes between 1992 and 2006, leading Readers Digest to proclaim it one of "America's Deadliest Highways" in 2000.^[3] After being contacted by and subsequently meeting the family of a fatal crash victim in 2003, ALDOT Director Joe McInnes decided to expedite the construction on the last remaining stretch of two-lane road between Seale and the Barbour County line.^[4] This 16-mile section was completed and opened in late 2010. The old alignment in Russell County is still open to traffic and is now labeled County Route 137.

Traveling south from Tennessee, as of mid-2009, US-431 is a four-lane route to Oxford, Alabama. Then, after diverting from I-20 east of Oxford at Exit 191, it reverts to a two-lane highway southward to Opelika, Alabama, with a brief four-lane stretch just south of Wedowee, Alabama. From Opelika southward to its southern terminus in Dothan, Alabama, US-431 is now open as a four-lane highway.

Major intersections

County	Location	mi[1]	km	Destinations	Notes
Houston	Dothan	0.000	0.000	US 231 / US 231 Bus. north / US 431 Bus. north (South Oates Street) / SR 210 (Ross Clark Circle) – Ozark, Enterprise, Ashford, Headland	Southern end of US-431; SR-1 follows US-231 from this point southward
		12.727	20.482	SR 53 – Cottonwood
		14.458	23.268	US 84 / US 84 Bus. west (SR-12/East Main Street) – Ashford	Southern end of concurrency with US-84
		14.933	24.032	SR 52 – Columbia
		17.838	28.707	US 84 / US 431 Bus. (SR-1/Reeves Street) / SR 210 – Ozark, Headland, Eufaula	Northern end of concurrency with SR-210/US-84; SR-1 follows Bus 431 through Dothan; Southern end of concurrency with SR-1
Henry	Headland	25.754	41.447	SR 134 – Abbeville, Headland, Columbia
		26.270	42.277	SR 173 north – Newville	Southern terminus of SR-173
	Abbeville	39.748	63.968	SR 27 – Ozark, Abbeville
		42.396	68.230	SR 10 – Blue Springs, Abbeville
Barbour	​	59.970	96.512	SR 95 south	Northern terminus of SR-95
	Eufaula	61.908	99.631	SR 131 south – Bakerhill	Northern terminus of SR-131
		64.058	103.091	SR 30 west – Clayton, Troy	Eastern terminus of SR-30
		66.823	107.541	US 82 east (SR-6 east/Barbour Street)	Southern end of concurrency with US-82
		68.307	109.929	US 82 west (SR-6 west) – Montgomery	Northern end of concurrency with US-82
	​	74.949	120.619	SR 165 north – Cottonton	Southern terminus of SR-165
Russell	Seale	96.895	155.937	SR 26 west / CR 18 east – Hurtsboro, Union Springs	Eastern terminus of SR-26
		99.105	159.494	SR 169 north / CR 138 east – Phenix City, Seale	Southern terminus of SR-169
	​	109.155	175.668	SR 165 south (Fort Mitchell Road)	Northern terminus of SR-165
	Phenix City	112.081	180.377	US 280 east (SR-38 east) – Birmingham, Opelika, Columbus, Atlanta	Western end of concurrency with US-280
		113.942	183.372	US 80 west (SR-8 west) – Montgomery	Western end of concurrency with US-80
		114.888	184.894	US 80 east (SR-8 east) – Columbus	Eastern end of concurrency with US-80
Lee	Opelika	137.253	220.887	I‑85 / US 29 (SR-15) / US 280 west (SR-38 west) – Montgomery, Atlanta	Western end of concurrency with US-280; I-85 Exit 62
Chambers	Waverly	149.840	241.144	SR 147 south – Auburn	Northern terminus of SR-147
	Lafayette	158.859	255.659	SR 50
		160.794	258.773	SR 77 north – Wadley	Southern terminus of SR-77
Randolph	Roanoke	180.783	290.942	SR 22 – Roanoke, Rock Mills
	Wedowee	194.314	312.718	SR 48 west – R. L. Harris Dam	Southern end of concurrency with SR-48
		194.437	312.916	SR 48 east (Woodland Avenue)	Northern end of concurrency with SR-48
Cleburne	Hollis Crossroads	212.540	342.050	SR 9 – Ashland, Montgomery, Atlanta
	​	217.805	350.523	SR 281	SR-281 crosses US-431 on an overpass, but the two routes do not actually intersect. SR-281 is accessible via a county road just south of the overpass.
Calhoun	Oxford	221.328	356.193	I‑20 east – Atlanta	Eastern end of concurrency with I-20; I-20 Exit 191
		225.036	362.160	I‑20 west – Birmingham	Western end of concurrency with I-20; I-20 Exit 188
		225.269	362.535	US 78 (SR-4)	Partial Interchange
	Anniston	232.534	374.227	SR 21 (McClellan Boulevard) – Anniston, Jacksonville	Partial cloverleaf/trumpet interchange
	Alexandria	240.300	386.725	SR 144 west – Ohatchee	Eastern terminus of SR-144
	​	247.070	397.621	SR 204 east – Jacksonville	Western terminus of SR-204
Etowah	Gadsden	258.458	415.948	US 278 east (SR-74 east/Piedmont Cut-Off) – Hokes Bluff, Piedmont, Atlanta	Eastern end of concurrency with US-278
		260.232	418.803	SR 291 south (Hood Avenue) to I‑759 – Gadsden State Community College	Northern terminus of SR-291
		260.519	419.265	US 411 (SR-25/Albert Rains Boulevard) – Rainbow City, Ashville, Centre	Partial cloverleaf interchange
		261.994	421.638	SR 211 north (North 12th Street)	Southern terminus of SR-211
		265.274	426.917	I‑59 – Birmingham, Chattanooga	I-59 Exit 183
	Attalla	266.117	428.274	US 11 north (SR-7 north/3rd Street)	Southern end of concurrency with US-11
		266.449	428.808	US 11 south (SR-7 south/3rd Street)	Northern end of concurrency with US-11
		268.363	431.888	US 278 west (SR-74 west) – Cullman	Western end of concurrency with US-278
		268.829	432.638	SR 77 south – Lincoln, Walnut Grove	Northern terminus of SR-77
	Sardis City	277.880	447.205	SR 205 north	Southern terminus of SR-205
Marshall	Boaz	280.544	451.492	SR 168 (Mill Avenue) – Douglas
	Albertville	286.741	461.465	SR 75 to SR 68 – Geraldine
	Guntersville	292.423	470.609	SR 205 south	Northern terminus of SR-205
		294.742	474.341	SR 79 south – Blountsville, Birmingham	Southern end of concurrency with SR-79
		295.822	476.079	SR 69 south – Cullman, Arab	Northern terminus of SR-69
		296.190	476.672	SR 227 south (Lusk Street) – Lake Guntersville State Park	Northern terminus of SR-227
		302.114	486.205	SR 79 north – Scottsboro	Northern end of concurrency with SR-79
Madison	Huntsville	333.702	537.041	US 231 south (Memorial Parkway) / SR 53 north (Governors Drive) – Arab, Decatur	Southern end of northern concurrency with US-231; southern end of northern signed segment of SR-53
		334.700	538.647	I‑565 / US 72 Alt.
		335.207	539.463	US 72 west (SR-2 west) / University Drive	Southern end of concurrency with US-72
		336.884	542.162	US 72 east	Northern end of concurrency with US-72
	Hazel Green	352.958	568.031	US 231 / US 431 north	Continuation into Tennessee; northern terminus of SR-1
1.000 mi = 1.609 km; 1.000 km = 0.621 mi       Concurrency terminus

See also

• Alabama portal
• U.S. Roads portal

References

External links

Route map: Google

• Media related to U.S. Route 431 in Alabama at Wikimedia Commons

U.S. Route 431
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