State Route 53 (SR 53) is a

state highway A state highway, state road, or state route (and the equivalent provincial highway, provincial road, or provincial route) is usually a road that is either ''numbered'' or ''maintained'' by a sub-national state or province. A road numbered by a ...

in the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...

Alabama (We dare defend our rights) , anthem = "Alabama (state song), Alabama" , image_map = Alabama in United States.svg , seat = Montgomery, Alabama, Montgomery , LargestCity = Huntsville, Alabama, Huntsville , LargestCounty = Baldwin County, Al ...

. The majority, between

Dothan Dothan is a place-name from the Hebrew Bible, identified with Tel Dothan. It may refer to: * Dothan, Alabama, a city in Dale, Henry, and Houston counties in the U.S. state of Alabama * Dani Dothan, lyricist and vocalist for the Israeli rock and ne ...

and

Huntsville Huntsville is a city in Madison County, Limestone County, and Morgan County, Alabama, United States. It is the county seat of Madison County. Located in the Appalachian region of northern Alabama, Huntsville is the most populous city in th ...

, is signed as U.S. Route 231 (US 231), but the two ends – south to

Florida Florida is a state located in the Southeastern region of the United States. Florida is bordered to the west by the Gulf of Mexico, to the northwest by Alabama, to the north by Georgia, to the east by the Bahamas and Atlantic Ocean, and to ...

and north to

I-65 Interstate 65 (I-65) is a major north–south Interstate Highway in the central United States. As with most primary Interstates ending in 5, it is a major crosscountry, north–south route, connecting between the Great Lakes and the Gulf ...

/ US 31 near

Tennessee Tennessee ( , ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked state in the Southeastern region of the United States. Tennessee is the 36th-largest by area and the 15th-most populous of the 50 states. It is bordered by Kentucky to th ...

– are independent. In those areas, US 231 uses SR 1, sharing the route with US 431 north of Huntsville, where it is referred to as Memorial Parkway. An stretch of SR 53, from

Research Park Boulevard Research Park Boulevard (State Route 255 or SR 255) runs from I-565 to Bob Wade Lane on the north and west sides of Huntsville in Madison County, Alabama. Much of the route is a limited access highway, with the entire route planned to be limited ...

to just south of Ardmore, is designated as the "Paul Luther Bolden Memorial Highway" in honor of Paul L. Bolden, a

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration and is awarded to recognize American soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians and coast guardsmen who have distinguished themselves by acts of valor. ...

recipient and Madison County's most-decorated

World War II World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposin ...

veteran.

Route description

Beginning at its southern terminus at SR 71, SR 53 assumes a slight northwesterly trajectory as it travels through Dothan, where it joins US 231, heading towards Montgomery. Between Dothan and

, SR 53 is the unsigned partner to US 231, however, only SR-53’s mile markers are present along the route. At Huntsville, SR 53 diverts from US 231 and once again becomes a signed route until it reaches its northern terminus just west of Ardmore at

/ US 31 crossing several major roads along the way including

University A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...

and Sparkman Drives in Huntsville. The northbound lane of SR 53 actually enters Tennessee before going south to I-65. Tennessee State Route 7 travels concurrently with SR 53 on the state line and both Alabama and Tennessee mile markers are present on the highway. This route is the rest of Governor's Drive—US-431's

right-of-way Right of way is the legal right, established by grant from a landowner or long usage (i.e. by prescription), to pass along a specific route through property belonging to another. A similar ''right of access'' also exists on land held by a gov ...

—in Huntsville, becoming Jordan Lane after its two-part junction with I-565, featuring Jordan Lane and Governor's Drive. Jordan Lane is AL-53's right-of-way until its northern terminus in Ardmore.

Major intersections

References

{{Reflist, refs= {{cite news , first=Paul , last=Huggins , newspaper=

The Huntsville Times ''The Huntsville Times'' is a thrice-weekly newspaper published in Huntsville, Alabama, and printed in Birmingham, Alabama. It also serves the surrounding areas of north Alabama's Tennessee Valley region. The ''Times'' formerly operated as an af ...

, location=

Huntsville, AL Huntsville is a city in Madison County, Limestone County, and Morgan County, Alabama, United States. It is the county seat of Madison County. Located in the Appalachian region of northern Alabama, Huntsville is the most populous city in th ...

, publisher=

Advance Publications Advance Publications, Inc., doing business as Advance, is an American media company owned by the descendants of S.I. Newhouse Sr., Donald Newhouse and S.I. Newhouse Jr. It owns a large number of subsidiary companies, including Condé Nast, an ...

, title=Paul Luther Bolden Memorial Highway honors Madison County's highest decorated WWII soldier , url=http://blog.al.com/breaking/2013/08/paul_luther_bolden_memorial_hi.html , date=August 21, 2013 , access-date=August 22, 2013

053 53 may refer to: * 53 (number) * one of the years 53 BC, AD 53, 1953, 2053 * FiftyThree, an American privately held technology company that specializes in tools for mobile creation and visual thinking * 53rd Regiment Alabama Cavalry * 53rd Regiment ...

Highways in Montgomery, Alabama Transportation in Huntsville, Alabama

Route description

Major intersections

See also

References