Nearly 11 years ago, Donald J. Trump came to Mobile and filled Ladd-Peebles Stadium with tens of thousands of Alabamians who believed America was ready for a new kind of leadership.
People in Mobile remember that day well. Long before the political class understood the movement he was building, Alabamians saw it clearly. President Trump was giving voice to forgotten Americans who wanted a stronger country, secure borders and a government that works for the people who pay for it.
That movement helped change the course of our nation’s history.
Now, in his second term, President Trump is delivering again in the same city where that historic movement found its earliest and strongest support. Thanks to his leadership, we can inform the people of Alabama that the Mobile River Bridge and Bayway project is finally moving toward construction after 30 years of discussion, delay and doubt.
This is a major moment for Alabama.
Anyone who has been stuck in traffic at the Wallace Tunnel or on the Bayway understands the need for change. But this project is not just about congestion in Mobile and Baldwin counties. It is a key to unlocking our state’s full potential.
The Wallace Tunnel and Bayway are part of one of the most important transportation corridors in America, touching a major port, airport, naval shipbuilding facility and hundreds of thousands of workers, families, visitors, businesses, military assets and supply chains across the Gulf Coast and the entire country.
The need to fix this long-standing bottleneck has never been in doubt. The challenge has been getting it done.
Major infrastructure projects are complex, and this one has been the most challenging in Alabama’s history. Over the years, the project was burdened by rising costs, changing plans, bureaucratic red tape and unnecessary extras. All made it harder to deliver the core infrastructure Alabama actually needs.
At times, Washington seemed more interested in extraneous accessories and paperwork than in simply helping Alabama build a bridge. Federally-required add-ons such as an “observation overlook” and dedicated pedestrian and bicycle paths added to the cost but did nothing to solve the central problem: moving people and commerce safely and efficiently through one of the most important interstate corridors in the United States.
This is where President Trump’s leadership is making the difference.
He knows infrastructure is about building roads and bridges that serve the American people, not funding wish lists that just make projects more expensive and harder to complete. So, his administration is stepping in, cutting through red tape and helping Alabama clear the final obstacles standing in the way of this transformational project.
Let us describe what the White House is committing to do:
First, the Trump administration is selecting the Mobile River Bridge and Bayway as the first project to ever qualify for the Interstate System Reconstruction and Rehabilitation Pilot Program. This is a major breakthrough. It gives Alabama the ability to use toll revenue in the most effective and responsible way possible to help finance the project, ensuring it moves forward as a complete solution.
Second, President Trump is clearing mounds of red tape surrounding the previously awarded $550 million Bridge Investment Program grant. That flexibility will allow Alabama to use those funds more quickly as the state prepares to begin construction.
Third, President Trump’s administration is cutting unnecessary bureaucratic requirements and commitments from the project scope, creating hundreds of millions of dollars in cost savings. That is exactly the kind of common-sense leadership taxpayers deserve.
None of this happens by accident. It follows months – even years – of serious, high-level discussions among Alabama’s congressional delegation, local leaders from Mobile and Baldwin counties, Gov. Kay Ivey, the Alabama Department of Transportation, U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, and senior federal transportation officials – all with the active participation and support of President Trump.
We are obviously grateful to President Trump. We are also grateful to the state and community leaders – especially those who serve on the Mobile and Eastern Shore MPOs – who never gave up on this project. All have worked side-by-side to deliver for the people.
Their leadership has positioned the state to finalize the federal TIFIA loan, which is expected by late summer to close the remaining funding gap and would put the project on schedule for a groundbreaking before the end of the year.
There will be more details to share in the weeks ahead as the final pieces are completed, and we look forward to inviting President Trump to the groundbreaking ceremony and a triumphant return to Mobile.
Alabama is ready to build this bridge. The finish line is now in sight and President Donald J. Trump, state officials and the local MPOs deserve enormous credit for getting us here.
