By AMY JONES / Associate Editor

HOOVER — A project to widen Valleydale Road from Caldwell Mill Road to Inverness Center Drive has been put on hold as plans undergo a redesign.

Hoover City Engineer Rod Long said the federal government wanted the project to include the intersection of Valleydale Road and Caldwell Mill Road, prompting the redesign.

“They did not want the project ending short of Caldwell Mill Road because of the congestion around Caldwell Mill, so they wanted that intersection included in the project,” Long said.

The project will widen Valleydale Road to five lanes between Caldwell Mill Road and Inverness Center Drive.

Long said he doesn’t know when construction will begin on the project, which has been in the works for more than a decade. However, he has a meeting Jan. 20 to discuss the project’s progress, he said.

Long said once construction does begin, the project will likely take at least two years to complete. The U.S. Department of Transportation, which administers federal dollars for the project, will decide on the length of the project, he said.

The project was originally projected to cost $20 million, Long said.