State ownership will end Alabama bridge tolls
Alabama Governor Kay Ivey says tolls on the Foley Express Bridge to the community of Orange Beach will be cancelled as soon as the State takes ownership. That’s supposed to happen at twelve noon Thursday. Alabama announced plans to buy the bridge for fifty seven million dollars last month. The thoroughfare is currently a private toll bridge that provides an alternate route to state beaches. Alabama is also building another bridge across the Intracoastal Waterway to help ease congestion. When that span is completed in 2026, each bridge is supposed to be converted to one-way crossing.
Alabama announced in April plans to buy the Foley Beach Express Bridge and eliminate tolls to drive across it. Governor Kay Ivey and the mayors of Gulf Shores and Orange Beach announced an agreement for the Alabama Department of Transportation to purchase the bridge from the Baldwin County Bridge Company for $57 million. The thoroughfare is a private toll bridge that provides an alternate route to state beaches. Ivey’s office said in a press release that the bridge will become toll free as soon as the deal closes.
“Alabama’s Gulf Coast continues to experience record growth and success, and I am proud we are making needed infrastructure improvements in the area that will help alleviate traffic congestion for Alabamians and those visiting our beaches,” Ivey said.
Alabama is also building another bridge across the Intracoastal Waterway to help ease congestion. When that span is completed in 2026, each bridge will be converted to one-way crossing. The Beach Express Bridge will carry traffic north away from the beach and the new Intracoastal Waterway bridge will carry vehicles south.
