Addressing I-10 bridge cost spikes can’t include hiking tolls, Fairhope official says
As Biden pledge full federal funding for Key Bridge, Alabama officials push for state’s share
MOBILE, Ala. (WALA) - Fairhope City Council President Jack Burrell took notice when President Joe Biden pledged full support from the federal government to rebuild the Key Bridge in Baltimore after a disaster involving a runaway ship.
Burrell, who also chairman of the Eastern Shore Metropolitan Planning Organization, told FOX10 News on Monday that he understands the Key Bridge falls under emergency funding. Still, he said it is a little hard to take after years of being told the federal cupboard is bare when it comes to funding a bridge over the Mobile River and replacing the Bayway with a wider span.
“It’s funny how they can find the money for those emergency situations where they can’t find it for, you know, our everyday commute situations,” he said.
Burrell’s comments come after the Alabama Department of Transportation last week announced a 60-day pause in the project amid soaring cost estimates. In 2019, the state transportation agency projected it to cost $2.1 billion. Proposed tolls killed that version of the project, but the metropolitan planning organizations in Mobile and Baldwin County reached agreement with the state in 2022 to resuscitate the idea.
By then, the estimated cost had risen to $2.7 billion, but officials pledged to keep tolls to no more than $2.50 a trip for drivers who had transponders in their vehicles. The latest projection pegs the cost as high as $3.5 billion.
“They have to find the funding,” Burrell said. “Costs are coming in, you know, more than they expected. You know, interest rates have risen.”
One thing Burrell said he does not want to backtrack on is the toll rates.
“We’re holding ALDOT’s feet to the fire the $2.50 toll,” he said. “So I’m gonna say right now, it can be (built without increasing the toll rate). I know that putting that into the framework and putting that restriction on it – it makes it harder for them. … You don’t want to make it easy on them to just say, ‘We can make the toll whatever.’”
It remains unclear who cost-cutting options might be on the table. Squeezing savings out of design changes is difficult given all of the federal requirements attached to the project.
The state has applied for a so-called Mega Grant from the U.S. Department of Transportation. ALDOT officials told FOX10 News in a prepared statement that the agency continues to seek additional federal funding.
“The overall construction cost will be largely determined through ongoing contract negotiations with the joint venture teams, whose construction methods are proprietary, so we’re limited in how much we can share at this point,” the agency stated. “Building the project requires construction costs at a level that can be repaid from funds available, including anticipated toll proceeds, after considering the financing costs (primarily interest).”
Mobile City Councilman Cory Penn, a member of the Mobile MPO, said he is not sure what cost savings might be possible. But he said the bridge is of national importance.
“I’m a very optimistic person,” he said. “And so, I mean, we already knew this. And you know, we’ve looked at the numbers. Everything has gone up. I mean, we’ve seen that as a city. … We know how important this project is not just for Baldwin County and Mobile County, but for our region and our nation. It’s a big project that affects a lot of people.”
Penn said he has faith that a solution will be found.
“I think that we have a great organization that’s working towards coming up with strategies and ideas to make sure that we can get this this bridge built,” he said.
Burrell said he believes that if there are savings to be had, it is less likely to be a reduction in costs like labor, concrete and steel. More likely, he said, savings will come in the form of creative financing or spreading tolls out over a longer period of time.
Burrell said the state undoubtedly will review its analysis of how much revenue tolls could produce. He said cutting the toll rate may paradoxically lead to more revenue.
“Sometimes, you know, you could lower a toll and maybe make more money because more people wouldn’t avoid that,” he said. “So there’s toll avoidance that they look at. They’re looking at risk factors. You know, these design-build teams have a lot of risk that they have to take into account on a project of this size. OK, can we reduce the risk for them?”
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