U.S. Route 11 (US 11) runs southwest to northeast across northcentral Alabama for . It enters the state from

Mississippi Mississippi ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Alabama to the east, the Gulf of Mexico to the south, Louisiana to the s ...

concurrent with US 80 and exits into

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

east of Sulphur Springs. US 11 runs through the major cities of

Tuscaloosa Tuscaloosa ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Tuscaloosa County, Alabama, Tuscaloosa County in west-central Alabama, United States, on the Black Warrior River where the Gulf Coastal Plain, Gulf Coastal and Piedmont (United States), Piedm ...

and

Birmingham Birmingham ( ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and metropolitan borough in the metropolitan county of West Midlands (county), West Midlands, within the wider West Midlands (region), West Midlands region, in England. It is the Lis ...

, as well as the smaller cities and towns of

Cuba Cuba, officially the Republic of Cuba, is an island country, comprising the island of Cuba (largest island), Isla de la Juventud, and List of islands of Cuba, 4,195 islands, islets and cays surrounding the main island. It is located where the ...

York York is a cathedral city in North Yorkshire, England, with Roman Britain, Roman origins, sited at the confluence of the rivers River Ouse, Yorkshire, Ouse and River Foss, Foss. It has many historic buildings and other structures, such as a Yor ...

, Livingston, Epes, Boligee, Eutaw, Cottondale, Coaling,

Woodstock The Woodstock Music and Art Fair, commonly referred to as Woodstock, was a music festival held from August 15 to 18, 1969, on Max Yasgur's dairy farm in Bethel, New York, southwest of the town of Woodstock, New York, Woodstock. Billed as "a ...

, Bessemer,

Brighton Brighton ( ) is a seaside resort in the city status in the United Kingdom, city of Brighton and Hove, East Sussex, England, south of London. Archaeological evidence of settlement in the area dates back to the Bronze Age Britain, Bronze Age, R ...

Midfield In many sports, midfield is the part of a sports field that is near the line that is equally far from the end lines. That is, in American football it is the part of the field near the 50-yard line; in association football (soccer) and field hoc ...

, Trussville,

Argo In Greek mythology, the ''Argo'' ( ; ) was the ship of Jason and the Argonauts. The ship was built with divine aid, and some ancient sources describe her as the first ship to sail the seas. The ''Argo'' carried the Argonauts on their quest fo ...

, Springville, Ashville, Steele, Attalla, Reece City, and Collinsville. State Route 7 (SR 7) is designated along the entire route but unsigned. Aside from portions within major cities and towns, US 11 is largely a rural two-lane road. The route has been largely supplanted by Interstate 59 (I-59), as well as

I-20 I20, I 20 or I-20 may refer to: * Interstate 20, a highway in the southeastern United States * I-20 (form), a United States government document that provides supporting information for the issuance of a student visa or change of status * I-20 (rap ...

between Mississippi and Birmingham.

Route description

Mississippi state line to Tuscaloosa

Starting at the Mississippi state line, US 11, along with US 80, travel northeast toward

. In this location, US 80 turns eastward onto a four-lane divided highway. Continuing on US 11, it intersects SR 17 in

, SR 28 in Livingston (where the

University of West Alabama The University of West Alabama (UWA) is a public university in Livingston, Alabama, United States. Founded in 1835, the school began as a church-supported school for young women called "Livingston Female Academy". The university serves students ...

is located), and SR 39 near Epes. After traversing through Epes, US 11 crosses above the

Tombigbee River The Tombigbee River is a tributary of the Mobile River, approximately 200 mi (325 km) long, in the U.S. states of Mississippi and Alabama. Together with the Alabama, it merges to form the short Mobile River before the latter empties i ...

south of

Fort Tombecbe Fort Tombecbe (Fort de Tombecbé), also spelled Tombecbee and Tombeché, was a stockade fort located on the Tombigbee River near the border of French Louisiana, in what is now Sumter County, Alabama. It was constructed under the leadership of J ...

, part of the

Tennessee–Tombigbee Waterway The Tennessee–Tombigbee Waterway (popularly known as the Tenn-Tom) is a artificial waterway built in the 20th century from the Tennessee River to the junction of the Black Warrior- Tombigbee River system near Demopolis, Alabama, United State ...

. Going further, US 11 traverses through Boligee and then through Eutaw. In Eutaw, the route intersects two different routes at the

Greene County Courthouse Square District The Greene County Courthouse Square District is a historic district in Eutaw, Alabama, United States. It is centered on the old Old Greene County Courthouse and extends outward along U.S. Route 11 and Alabama State Route 7. It features exa ...

: US 43 and SR 14. While SR 14 briefly runs concurrently with US 11, US 43 runs concurrently with it longer. After leaving Eutaw, both U.S. Highways stumble across I-20/I-59 in

Knoxville Knoxville is a city in Knox County, Tennessee, United States, and its county seat. It is located on the Tennessee River and had a population of 190,740 at the 2020 United States census. It is the largest city in the East Tennessee Grand Division ...

. From there, both routes travel on a local road serving

Ralph Ralph (pronounced or ) is a male name of English origin, derived from the Old English ''Rædwulf'' and Old High German ''Radulf'', cognate with the Old Norse ''Raðulfr'' (''rað'' "counsel" and ''ulfr'' "wolf"). The most common forms are: * Ra ...

and Fosters. After crossing above the

Black Warrior River The Black Warrior River is a waterway in west-central Alabama in the southeastern United States. The river rises in the extreme southern edges of the Appalachian Highlands and flows 178 miles (286 km) to the Tombigbee River, of which the ...

, the road approaches

. Along the way, they intersect Joe Mallisham Parkway. In downtown, they come across

Stillman College Stillman College is a Private college, private historically black colleges and universities, historically black Presbyterian Church (USA), Presbyterian college in Tuscaloosa, Alabama. It awards Bachelor of Arts and Bachelor of Science degrees i ...

. After that, US 43 branches north along SR 69 while US 11 travels south along I-359/SR 69.

Tuscaloosa to Downtown Birmingham

As the three routes meet I-20/I-59, I-359 ends while the rest continues as a local road. Shortly after US 11 leaves the freeway, it then turns east along Skyland Boulevard. Along the way, the route meets SR 215, US 82, and I-20/I-59. As the route leaves Tuscaloosa, it intersects SR 215 in Cottondale for the second time. The route then meets the same interstate freeway for the fourth time that it parallels. It then passes through Coaling, Vance, and

. In Woodstock, it begins to run concurrently with SR 5. After that, both routes then travel along the I-20/I-59 freeway. East of Lake View, four of the routes on the freeway then meet SR 316. After that, the freeway then comes across I-459 near McCalla. Shortly after I-459, US 11, as well as SR 5, leave the freeway and then onto 9th Avenue Southwest. They then go through several suburbs of

. As they approach downtown, SR 5 turned northwest onto US 78 while US 11 continues east along US 78. After that, the road becomes a short

one-way pair A one-way pair, one-way couple, or couplet refers to that portion of a bi-directional traffic facilitysuch as a road, bus, streetcar, or light rail linewhere its opposing flows exist as two independent and roughly parallel facilities. Descriptio ...

and then comes across I-65. Then, US 78 branches east while US 11 continues northeast. Shortly thereafter, the route meets US 31/US 280.

Downtown Birmingham to the Georgia state line

At this point, US 11 runs through industries and railroads in Birmingham. It then comes across Messer Airport Highway, a local road that connects to

Birmingham–Shuttlesworth International Airport Birmingham–Shuttlesworth International Airport , formerly Birmingham Municipal Airport and later Birmingham International Airport, is a civil-military airport serving Birmingham, Alabama. The airport also provides scheduled airline service f ...

. After meeting I-20 for the last time, US 11 no longer parallels I-20. The route then meets I-59, SR 75, I-459, several more state routes, and US 231 in several locations. It then meets US 278/US 431 near Gadsden. After that, it continues to meet even more state routes, as well as I-59, along the rest of the route. It eventually crosses the Georgia state line.

History

Between the Mississippi state line and Birmingham, US 11 roughly follows a route surveyed by pathfinders in 1912.

Future

In 2024, ALDOT will began work to convert the US 11 (Skyland Boulevard)/SR 69 intersection into a single-point urban interchange (SPUI) in order to improve traffic flow. The project, which is a joint effort between the Tuscaloosa Road Improvement Commission and ALDOT, is expected to cost $89 million and take about three years to complete.

Major intersections

References

External links

* {{state detail page browse, type=US, route=11, state=Alabama, statebefore=Mississippi, stateafter=Georgia Alabama Transportation in Sumter County, Alabama Transportation in Greene County, Alabama Transportation in Tuscaloosa County, Alabama Transportation in Bibb County, Alabama Transportation in Jefferson County, Alabama Transportation in St. Clair County, Alabama Transportation in Etowah County, Alabama Transportation in DeKalb County, Alabama 11