Many People Happy About Plans To Widen Roadway

A new plan to ease traffic problems on a busy Mobile thoroughfare is getting a thumbs up from many people.
The proposal is to widen Schillinger Road from Howells Ferry Road to Moffett Road.
Right now it is two lanes, but the plan would expand it to five lanes.
Cleveland Kite and his wife have lived in a home on Schillinger Road for more then ten years.
They said pulling out of their driveway can be an adventure.
When asked how long it takes to turn left coming out of the driveway, Martha Kite said, "I bet sometimes five minutes or so. It's just according to what time of the day it is."
Alabama transportation officials put out maps at an open house Tuesday night so people could look at their plan to widen a stretch of Schillinger to five lanes with a center turn lane.
Don Powell with the Alabama Department of Transportation said, "I think it's a plan that the county has to make Schillinger Road a beneficial north-south corridor on the west side of Mobile."
Linda Kearns lives on Schillinger Road and she said, "The traffic is just horrible there and this is way behind schedule. It needs to be done right away."
The Lollipop Tree children's store just opened on Schillinger two weeks ago.
Ted Prevatt with the store said, "We look very much forward to getting the traffic count up higher and getting the traffic moving more slowly."
Cleveland Kite did want one question answered.
When asked if he had concerns about how much of his front yard would be taken, Kite said, "Yes, sir. I am concerned about that because we do live close to the road now, and we will live even closer to the road."
Powell said some businesses or homes might lose some of their front yards, but, he said, "We try to minimize it as much as we can."
State officials said construction on the road isn't scheduled to start until the year 2014.
But they said they hope to get the date moved up.