Lt. Gov. Will Ainsworth is calling for a change in leadership at the Alabama Department of Transportation after the agency recently diverted more than $1 billion in funding to a rural highway project that runs from Thomasville to just north of Moundville. I'm looking for it again.

Ainsworth said the money should be used for road projects in densely populated and high-traffic areas of the state.

“With new jobs, new investments, and new families moving there every day, roads and infrastructure are growing rapidly in the Tennessee Valley, and any traffic congestion threatens the region's growth.” said Ainsworth. “Rather than sustain this economic boom, the Alabama Department of Transportation and its Secretary John Cooper have diverted more than $1 billion in purely state funds to rural highway projects with low traffic and population, leading to a firestorm. We’re spraying water on it, and obviously there’s less work to do.”

Ainsworth said the state's rural areas should also receive adequate funding, but should be prioritized over more densely populated areas.

“We must address areas with the greatest growth and population needs, such as Huntsville and Baldwin County on the Gulf Coast, while also leveraging federal funds for needed projects in rural parts of the state,” he said. .

As a longtime north Alabama resident, one road improvement project remains particularly important to him.

“At the same time, widening I-65 to eliminate hour-long wait times in traffic remains a priority,” Ainsworth said.

Ainsworth said the agency desperately needs two things.

“Obviously it's been a long time coming to have new leadership at ALDOT,” he said. “And there's plenty of common sense at the top.”

Austin Shipley is a staff writer at Yellowhammer News.