Transfer of toll bridge official, toll-free Beach Express bridge Thursday
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ORANGE BEACH, Ala. (WKRG) — Thursday at noon, driving through the toll plaza on Foley Beach Express will not cost you a thing.
The sale of the bridge is a first step in easing congestion on and off the island.
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“The Foley Beach Express will officially be toll-free,” Alabama Governor Kay Ivey announced as she signed the documents transferring ownership of the privately owned bridge to the State of Alabama.
It is welcome news for anyone who has driven around the bridge to avoid the toll or forked out the $5 to cross it.
“It’s a good step for locals to be able to manage our traffic better,” Gulf Shores Mayor Robert Craft said.
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The 60 million dollar sale of the toll bridge opens up possibilities to further ease traffic concerns as more people move to the area.
“Eliminating the toll is good no matter what,” Orange Beach Mayor Tony Kennon said. “From an economic perspective and it’s good for the folks that live down here but long term we just got to see what the traffic patterns are.”
That is a concern for Kennon.
“If it continues to grow and we see a shift from 59 over, then we need to reconsider what’s our next step,” Kennon said.
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The sale of the bridge also opens up the possibilities of future projects both on and off the island according to Craft.
“We’re still trying to understand the options we may have sooner or later to get to Interstate 65. Also to get all the way to the beach,” he said.
All of that will be determined down the road, for now, this first step is a big one.
“Now it’s official,” Ivey said. “Let’s go to work!”
That “work” may eventually mean an additional span on the bridge into Orange Beach depending on the amount of traffic that shifts to the “toll-free” Beach Express.
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