The Mobile Bridge and Bayway project in Alabama is "financially viable" after securing a US$125 million federal grant and around $250 million in state funding.
Construction is expected to start next year on the six-lane toll bridge over the Mobile River channel. It will be essentially a replacement of two two-lane bridges along with two three-lane bridges and the reconfiguration of seven interchanges.
The cable-stayed structure will have a 65.5m clearance over the Mobile River navigation channel, according to project information to the Alabama Department of Transportation. All infrastructure will be owned and operated by the department, with no private concessionaire.
According to proposal documents, the purpose of the project is to increase capacity of Interstate 10 (I-10) to meet existing and predicted future traffic volumes, provide a direct route for vehicles transporting hazardous materials and to minimise impacts to Mobile’s maritime industry.
Meanwhile, toll revenue will be used only to pay down the project debt, with tolling to end once the debt is paid off. There will also be no-toll routes on the Causeway, Wallace Tunnel, Bankhead Tunnel and Africatown Bridge.
