74-Mile Highway Corridor: The First PDB in Alabama 

For decades, communities in western Alabama have gone without the highway capacity needed to attract industry and new jobs. The 74‑mile West Alabama Highway changes that situation by improving safety and adding capacity across one of the state’s most rural corridors. The project adds two lanes to U.S. Highway 43 and State Route 69, expanding them into a four‑lane divided highway from Thomasville to Moundville. It also introduces five bypasses to steer truck traffic away from town centers. Once complete, this corridor will become the final link in a continuous four‑lane connection from Mobile to Tuscaloosa, opening new opportunities for underserved communities and creating a stronger freight route from the Port of Mobile. 

HDR serves as lead designer for this progressive design‑build (PDB) — the first of its kind for the Alabama Department of Transportation (ALDOT)  — bringing together civil, structural and geotechnical engineering with environmental permitting support, right-of‑way management and utility coordination. 

Phased to Deliver at Scale 

Given the project’s scale, the team divided the corridor into 13 segments ranging from 2 miles to more than 14 miles. Each segment has a dedicated production team aligned to an integrated master schedule, allowing design and construction activities to progress in a coordinated way. Across more than 70 miles of highway, the effort includes 23 new bridges, 100 culverts, more than 500 median drains and the excavation of 16 million cubic yards of dirt. 

HDR’s services span preliminary engineering and preconstruction through final design and design services during construction. That continuity helps keep decisions connected from concept to delivery, sustaining momentum while upholding the project’s goals for safety, mobility and community benefit. 

Clarity and Efficiency With Digital Delivery

From the outset, our national digital delivery specialists partnered with the contractor and ALDOT to shape an approach that advanced quality and streamlined production. Early in the project, ALDOT developed an OpenRoads Designer (ORD) workspace, and our team aligned tools and workflows so designers, reviewers and contractors could work from shared, reliable information. We developed 3D models for paving and grading to support reviews, bidding and construction. With ALDOT’s concurrence, these models replaced many traditional cross sections — eliminating nearly 5,000 plan sheets — while final signed and sealed plans continued to govern. The result was clearer intent, fewer pages to navigate and models that supported pricing and field use. 

Commitment to Collaboration

For ALDOT’s first progressive design‑build, HDR’s alternative delivery professionals helped the agency establish the structure and processes that guide this collaborative model. The delivery method brings the owner, contractor and engineer to the same table early, where together we work through staging, third‑party coordination and technical issues before they slow the job. 

On a project of this magnitude, excellence starts with integration and collaboration: design production teams aligned segment by segment, shared digital models, and an owner, builder and designer working side by side to advance decisions. Our team pairs national experts with those who live and work in Alabama, professionals who listen closely to local priorities, coordinate across disciplines and focus on creating lasting value. That mindset reflects our values: investing the effort to do things the right way, bringing smart methods and emerging technologies to the table, and delivering as one team across specialties.