After decades of planning and multiple funding challenges, Alabama officials said construction of the long-awaited Mobile River Bridge and Bayway Project is expected to begin before the end of 2026 under a revised phased approach designed to control costs while expanding Interstate 10 capacity across Mobile Bay.
The Alabama Department of Transportation (ALDOT), along with the Mobile Metropolitan Planning Organization and the Eastern Shore Metropolitan Planning Organization, announced July 9, 2026, that the project has advanced to the point where construction can proceed pending anticipated approval of a federal Transportation Infrastructure Finance and Innovation Act (TIFIA) loan.
The revised strategy reduces the project's initial cost while maintaining its long-term goal of increasing capacity along one of the Southeast's most heavily traveled freight corridors.
Phase One is estimated to cost approximately $3.2 billion and includes construction of a new six-lane cable-stayed bridge spanning the Mobile River, restriping the existing Bayway to provide six travel lanes across Mobile Bay and improvements to major interchanges, intersections and traffic operations throughout the corridor in Mobile and Baldwin counties.
A second phase, to be constructed as additional funding becomes available, will add a new Bayway structure. Officials said future toll revenue is expected to help finance that portion of the project.
Gov. Kay Ivey called the project one of Alabama's most significant infrastructure investments.
"This project is essential to Alabama's future and represents one of the most important infrastructure investments in our state's history," Ivey said. "This transformative project will strengthen our economy, improve safety and ensure we are better prepared in times of emergency."
The Mobile River Bridge and Bayway Project is intended to relieve chronic congestion along I-10, improve freight movement serving the Port of Mobile and strengthen hurricane evacuation routes linking Alabama with neighboring Gulf Coast states.
Rising Costs Prompt Phased Construction
Officials said the project team revised the construction strategy after updated engineering and financial analyses showed that building both the new bridge and a completely new Bayway simultaneously would exceed financially sustainable limits.
Several factors contributed to escalating costs, including nationwide construction inflation, higher labor and material prices, additional engineering and geotechnical challenges associated with the Bayway and evolving federal regulatory requirements.
Rather than delaying the entire project while additional funding is secured, ALDOT elected to divide construction into two phases, allowing work on the bridge and corridor improvements to begin while preserving plans for the future Bayway expansion.
The agency said the phased approach will provide meaningful congestion relief sooner while keeping the overall program financially viable.
Partnership Helps Advance Project
State officials credited cooperation among federal, state and local agencies with helping move the project toward construction.
According to ALDOT, months of coordination involving the White House, U.S. Department of Transportation, Federal Highway Administration, Gov. Ivey, Alabama's congressional delegation and local officials helped create a financing strategy capable of advancing the project.
Officials said recent federal actions provided additional flexibility for project funding, addressed regulatory requirements and supported financing mechanisms necessary to proceed.
The anticipated TIFIA loan remains a key component of the project's financial package.
Toll Collection to Begin After Bridge Opens
Officials emphasized that motorists will not pay tolls until the new Mobile River Bridge opens, which is currently projected for approximately 2031.
Existing routes, including the Wallace Tunnel, Bankhead Tunnel, Causeway and Africatown Bridge, will remain toll free.
Current toll proposals for passenger vehicles include a $60 unlimited monthly commuter pass, a $3 per-trip rate for motorists using an ALGO Pass and a $7.70 rate for drivers using compatible interoperable transponders. Drivers without a transponder would be billed through a pay-by-plate system.
ALDOT said ALGO transponders are expected to be distributed at no cost during the initial rollout.
Major Transportation Investment
Once completed, the Mobile River Bridge and Bayway Project will increase capacity across Mobile Bay, improve regional mobility and enhance freight access to the Port of Mobile while strengthening one of the nation's most important east-west interstate corridors.
The project also is expected to improve hurricane evacuation capabilities for Alabama's Gulf Coast while supporting continued economic growth throughout Mobile and Baldwin counties.
If construction begins as anticipated later this year, the project will represent the largest transportation infrastructure investment in Alabama history and one of the most significant highway construction projects currently under way in the Southeast.
For more information, visit mobileriverbridge.com. CEG
