Leaders Cuts Ribbon on McWright’s Ferry Road Extension in North Tuscaloosa

Leaders and officials from all over the region were in North Tuscaloosa on Friday morning to cut the ribbon on the recently completed extension of McWright's Ferry Road.

The over $60 million project, which connects Rice Mine Road to New Watermelon Road, is expected to be transformative for the area.

Leaders have said the new road will enable faster emergency response to and from north Tuscaloosa, open up a wide swath of land for residential development, and provide easy access to Lakes Tuscaloosa, Lake Nicol, Harris Lake, and more.

The ribbon-cutting ceremony took place just beyond the vehicle and pedestrian bridges built over North River as part of the project, which was named in honor of Leroy and the late Ruth McAbee.

Tuscaloosa Mayor Walt Maddox and Northport Mayor John Hinton spoke at the ceremony, as did current probate judge Rob Robertson and his predecessor in that role, Hardy McCollum, and Representatives Bill Lamb and Chris England.

"Today marks a monumental day for Tuscaloosa," Mayor Walt Maddox said. "The opening of the new McWright's Ferry Road will be truly transformational for the future of our city for generations to come."

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The project was funded through the Tuscaloosa County Road Improvement Commission and managed by the City of Tuscaloosa as part of its "Project NASCAR," which extended McWright's Ferry Road and improved Jack Warner Parkway.

The eight-member Road Improvement Commission, or TCTIC, oversees and finances road and bridge projects in Tuscaloosa and has members from the city, Northport, the county commission, the state, the Tuscaloosa Chamber, and the county's Industrial Development Authority.

"It shows you that we can still work together across governmental lines, across geographical and political boundaries," Maddox said. "That bold ideas can not only be thought of, but they can be implemented in a bipartisan, multi-government fashion.

Mr. Joe Robinson, the city's first-ever traffic director who retired after 40 years working for Tuscaloosa, also spoke about the importance of the new road and how long it's been a local priority."

Leroy McAbee and many members of his locally legendary family were at the ribbon-cutting Friday to see the new bridge named for the engineer and philanthropist and his late wife, Ruth.

"Ruth and Leroy McAbee have been transformative in the growth of Tuscaloosa," said Councilor Norman Crow. "It is an honor to see their legacy showcased in such a meaningful way."

Maddox said the rough idea to create TCRIC and dedicate local tax dollars specifically to improving local roads was born out of discussions on a trip to Cleveland with former probate judge Hardy McCollum. The retired leader was on-site on Friday to reflect on the completion of a job he that has been discussed so long, he sometimes wondered if he'd survive to see it done.

"The elected leadership up here, our job is to do one thing - solve problems. We're problem solvers," McCollum said. "If we're not solving our community's problems, we're not doing our jobs. And this was a community problem that needed solving."

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