After years of construction, the new Highway 82 bypass around Gordo is beginning to look less like a project and more like a highway.
That change could eventually mean more than a quicker drive through Pickens County. It could also change where people stop, shop and spend money in Gordo.
The Alabama Department of Transportation is in the final phase of the project, which realigns U.S. 82 from the northwest side of Gordo to just east of the Tuscaloosa County line.
The project carries a price tag of about $45.6 million and is currently expected to be completed in early summer 2027.
When construction is finished, U.S. 82 will provide a four-lane route from the Mississippi state line to Tuscaloosa.
For Gordo, the new highway also opens up land that town leaders see as an opportunity for future growth.
Mayor Robin Edgeworth said earlier this year that town officials were looking at zoning along the new corridor as they prepared for possible development. She also said Gordo had already received inquiries from businesses interested in the area.
While the new route could create opportunities along the bypass, there is another question worth watching: what happens along the existing Highway 82?
Businesses along the old route have long benefited from travelers passing directly through town. Once the bypass is complete, through traffic will have another option.
The existing Highway 82 isn’t disappearing. It will remain open and under state maintenance, allowing drivers to continue using the route through Gordo.
That leaves the town with two potential business corridors — the existing route that residents and longtime customers already know, and a new stretch of highway that could attract future development.
ALDOT has said improving economic development is one of the goals of the bypass project, along with improving mobility and safety.
Construction is still underway, but drivers are already getting a glimpse of what travel through this part of Pickens County will eventually look like.
For Gordo businesses, the bigger story may begin once the construction equipment leaves and drivers have a choice of which road to take.
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