ALDOT will convert the intersection of US-431 and Buck Island Drive in Guntersville to a Restricted Crossing U-Turn (RCUT) intersection to improve safety.
The RCUT plan includes installing channelizing curbs and flexible posts on Buck Island Drive and in the median crossover to prevent left turns from the side street. Instead, drivers will make a right turn followed by a U-turn at a designated turn lane and crossover north of the main intersection.
Left turns from US-431 southbound to Buck Island Drive will still be permitted.
The modifications will also prevent northbound-to-southbound U-turns at the main intersection and redirect those movements to the designated U-turn farther north.
Coming soon
ALDOT anticipates constructing the modifications in early 2026, following materials procurement and as weather permits.
A safe solution
RCUTS have proven effective at reducing crashes at several north Alabama intersections.
US-72 at Dug Hill Road near Huntsville was previously the site of multiple deadly wrecks. ALDOT maintenance forces converted it to an RCUT in 2019. Since the improvements, total crashes dropped 80 percent and injury crashes went down nearly 90 percent.
RCUTs on US-72 at SR-79 in Jackson County and on SR-75 at SR-68 in Marshall County also brought about significant reductions in the number of injury crashes as well as the severity of those crashes.
Intersections in Cherokee and Lauderdale counties underwent conversion to RCUTs earlier this year.
