By By ANNA M. LEE Assistant Editor
Brewton traffic has grown to the point where both city officials and the state of Alabama are considering ways to alleviate it.
Brewton's heaviest traffic is concentrated in downtown in the area where Hwy. 31 intersects with Hwy. 29 and Hwy. 41.
Increasing traffic downtown has now been a problem for 15 years, Jennings said.
At about 20,000 vehicles per day, the intersection of Hwy. 31, Hwy. 29 and Hwy. 41 receives almost as much traffic as Interstate 65.
Reasons for the heavy traffic at that intersection are the converging of those three highways, the railroad and the fact that it is downtown.
One possible remedy would be a truck route that bypasses downtown, the mayor said, and there may be a need for additional traffic lights and railroad crossing gates.
The problem with installing railroad crossing gates in the past has been that there may not be enough room for them at those intersections, he said.
The city may also eventually widen Persimmon St. to accommodate more traffic, making the flow of traffic through downtown a bit smoother.
According to Jennings, the City of Brewton is working with the Alabama Department of Transportation to correct the downtown traffic problems.